Fulfill Your Destiny
by Dat Salvadorean Chic
Summary: The notorious Lord Shen is given a second chance at life to find out whether the fact that his parents loved him is true and learns to love and to feel loved.
1. Prologue

Prologue

_A bright light_.

That was the first thing Lord Shen saw after being crushed by his own cannon, or at least the remains of it.

How did he ever get to this point? How could this happen? The Soothsayer was right about Shen's future; the warrior of black and white did defeat him, but then he accepted his fate to die and take his own life.

Personally, he didn't know why he didn't make one move. He decided that he didn't react because there was nothing left for him to live for.

The panda already took everything he ever wanted. He took everything: inner peace, loving parents who protected him before they parted, loyal friends, fame... _and he had nothing_.

Thirty years of planning to take all of China and now the curtains of his life have closed. Thirty years of just preparing for his predicted fate. Thirty years of suffering. _Thirty years of nothing_.

He now thought that he failed his parents once again- _BIG TIME_. But why would he care about them? They never cared for him. When he rampaged the panda village, he expected to feel pride and accomplishment from his thrilled parents, but instead, felt anger and betrayal from the looks of his parents' horrified faces. Nothing hurt him more than that moment that came from his own parents, the two people who gave him life and raised him. Well, he could then ask them, if they want him to be next in line for Gongmen City, he should defend himself to take the throne? What would they say to that?

They should've been on his side. But he wanted to surprise them with his act to make the news all the better for them, but that never happened. It was worse and earned him a one-way ticket to exile. He thought that they would be relieved that their son would live to take the throne.

But no, they exiled him. And since then, he believed that they never cared for him or even loved him... _never_.

He thought all this before he looked around, not realizing where he was from all the contemplating distracting him.

The world he was in now was bright, soft and foggy, but generally in a positive way. There were many hues of heavenly oranges, yellows and pinks in contrast to Shen's favorite colors: black and red. At first, he thought it was very quiet and dull there until he spotted a barely visible silhouette in the distance slowly coming closer in his direction. No, two silhouettes. They were shaped like him, but they were different in a way. One of the two was taller, broader and stronger-looking than the feminine, shorter-looking other. But as they came closer, he quickly realized that they were his parents.

_His parents._

_How could this be?_

He thought they were dead until he stupidly remembered that he is too. But... he was in heaven? But why? After all the horrible things he's done, which he never regretted even once, he was never fit to come here. But he felt suspicious by the time his parents finally came before him.

They looked youthful, totally unaged and very lively, as if they never died at all. They looked like they were exactly when they exiled him. _They exiled him..._

But then all that faded when Shen took a look at his mother. Her large brown eyes were clouded by tears, which he confused whether they were from happiness or sorrow. But he doubted they were happy to see him._ They never were_. The face his mother given him now was the exact same look she'd given him the moment he left in exile.

Then she started to sob and his father comforted her by wrapping his wings around her, soothing her. She jerked violently, but to Shen's curiosity, they were inaudible. He saw that his father say something to his wife, but never heard what was said. He heard not even a whisper.

But then anger crept up to him at that moment, knowing as if it were a fact that his father said to his wife, _"I know, he was a horrible excuse for a son…"_

But almost as if his thoughts were spoken out of mind, he heard a voice behind him.

"You assume too much," the voice said calmly.

Shen turned around and saw before him the very creator of kung fu and the wisest of all, alive or dead. Master Oogway. Like his parents' visage, he looked eternal and very peaceful. Untouchable. He had his staff with him and smiled broadly at him. Never before had Shen seen someone simile directly at him with honest meaning. There were many feigned smiles sent to him, but when Oogway smiled at him, there was no sense of dislike in it at all. Shen was obviously amazed.

"Assume? Nonsense. I assume nothing. I know." Shen said smugly and bitterly.

"Oh, really?" Oogway said as he came to a stop. "You assumed that you finished the panda genocide. You assumed that your parents"—he gestured to them—"would be pleased about what you did."

Shen remained quiet as the wise tortoise continued.

"You also assume that you're right all the time." He added.

Shen started breathing heavily. He was right. He always wanted to be right. He wanted everything to happen in his way and his way only. But he was embarrassed to say so, so he stood silent.

"Shall I go on?" Oogway asked.

There were five seconds before Shen could answer, "No."

He took another look at his parents. They were staring at him with impossibly worried looks, piercing him somewhere he never felt before. Without thinking, Shen lifted his wing and stretched it towards them, but he felt nothing. He tried again. _Nothing_.

His mother lifted her eyes at him and tears welled up again.

"_How come…_?" Shen whispered, not believing what was happening.

"They can feel you, and it pains them so much." Oogway simply explained.

"But how can I—"

"It's like touching or talking to strangers. You don't understand them or even know them."

Shen looked at his concerned parents frightfully.

"They know you. They feel you. They're concerned for you, Lord Shen." Oogway continued. "But you never knew that."

Shen shook his head worriedly.

"No, I know they hate me…"

Oogway just chuckled at the response and said, "You are still blindfolded, young Shen. You must understand their reason."

Shen hung his head and said coldly, "What reason…?" he shot up before he shouted, "If they cared about me, they would let me go find the panda that was DESTINED to defeat me!

What Shen hoped for was to be right this time, but all Oogway said to his statement was, "Did you ever hear the saying, _'One often meets his destiny on the road he takes to avoid it'_?"

Shen opened his beak, but had nothing to say. Oogway was absolutely right. No doubt about it.

"You _sealed_your fate, Shen." He said lastly.

Shen felt his throat go tight. The old tortoise was right. When he was running away from his presumed fate, it kept on running after him.

"So why are you telling me this, then?" Shen asked, looking down. His parents glanced at Oogway, wondering why as well. "I'm already dead, anyways."

The tortoise gently held out a hand to Shen's shoulder. The polar white peacock startled a bit from the gesture, but then grew comfortable.

"You deserve a second chance." He said simply.

Shen's eyes widened and looked up into Oogway's eyes, certain that he's not joking.

"Pardon?" he said in disbelief.

"You deserve a second chance," he repeated. "You have to realize how much you had. Your past, your present… your future."

He couldn't believe it. He has another chance at life.

"I will give you life again, but DON'T take advantage of it. If you mess it up, that's it. You had your chance."

Shen stole another glance at his parents. Do they love him as much as everyone says? He won't believe it until he finds evidence about it. He needs answers. He can't screw up this time.

"I'll do it." He said quietly, breathlessly. "But… how do I—"

"You must find inner peace." Oogway said with a smile.

Shen's heard that before and he took the wrong turn. This time, he'll consider it. But there's still something.

"But who'll teach me? Who'll help me?" he asked eagerly.

"You'll find out for yourself, Shen. This is your story to unfold. You will discover it cover to cover."

Shen already felt frustrated, but how can he say no?

"I'll do it." He said surely.

"Remember, Lord Shen," Oogway said seriously, but also gently, "Every random act of kindness goes a long way. Follow that path and you'll find love."

Shen didn't know how to respond, so he just nodded. Then with one touch of Oogway's staff to the top of the peacock's head, he came back.

His blood-red eyes shot opened suddenly just then and he felt his whole body again. But then he realized that he was lying down on sand. _Sand?_His feathers lightly touched the rough and sandy earth; it was moist, but he looked behind him and saw that the tide was low.

Then he stood up and found himself feeling odd. He identified himself closely and quickly noticed that his robe was still intact, clean, and undisturbed. He also noticed behind him was the ship he sailed in before his invasion. He actually got washed up to the shore. He saw a few of his blades stuck onto the wood, remembering that he threw them at the panda in his last battle. They had minimal rust, but still clear enough to see a reflection.

_Reflection…_

He carefully pulled out a blade and braced himself so the pull wouldn't accidently cut him. The chunk of metal slipped out smoothly with a whispery _shing_and took a look at himself with it.

He looked more or less the same, but he looked a bit younger. His feathers looked pure white and clean. So far, different than his ashy patched, dirty look before his death.

But his younger appearance startled him so. Perhaps he was the same age, but was given a youthful image to start over. Oogway must've done this for him. He remembered how impossibly stressful he was that he developed bags under his eyes, also his eyelids darkening to a grayish-black.

But now, his eyes were perfectly formed and his eyelids were light grey to go with his white feathers.

But by seeing himself uninjured after waking up from death, he remembered an important scar.

_His feet_.

They were still covered by the metal plating as he looked down at them.

Eager, he bent down to hurriedly take off the plating to see if they are healed like the rest of his body.

He closed his eyes as he did so, treating it like a surprise gift. Once he felt that they were off, he glanced down and frowned.

The burnt scars were still there. They were an ashy black color in contrast to his light orange legs. Out of everything else on his body, he wondered why his feet had to look the same as before.

Those scars were still with him, and he had to live with it. He had to thank Oogway for giving him youth again, but wished with everything that everywhere on his body was fixed. Embarrassed to show them to anyone, he covered up his feet again by placing back the metal plating.

This is a new day, but he had no idea how to start it. If people would see him, the first thing they would do is aim arrows at him and shoot at the chance they get. He's still currently a threat. If he's lucky, he would only get intimidated. But he never wants to feel that way anymore. He doesn't want to become alienated any longer. But that will take some time. He can't just pop out of nowhere in a huge crowd and yell out, "Hey! I'm Lord Shen and I've come to rearrange myself!" He thought of that as a simple death wish. He decided to walk alone all the way to the Valley of Peace—by himself. He was stealthy enough to be unseen and he could mostly cross without being spotted.

He looked around at the moment and started to step forward, but then remembered something.

_His weapons._

He took out a blade from inside his sleeve and stared at it. Then there was his reflection again. He looks different, but the same peacock from before just cannot repossess him.

He threw out his blade to the ground and angrily stripped himself of all his hidden weapons until he came to his jagged lance. It was a weapon he so long held that he can't bear to part with it. He decides to keep it to defend himself on the journey he's determined to take to find the one person he's sure will help him: _that warrior of black and white._


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Many years ago, deep into the jungles of China hails a small city that was once ruled by peacocks called the Forest of Prosperity. The peacocks the once ruled it was known as the Flower Peacock clan, for the city was abundant with colorful flowers and plants. It was a peaceful forest with respectful inhabitants. It was a city that which almost everyone envied for its peace and beauty.

For you see, the Flower Peacock clan had an alliance with the Fox clan not too far away to protect the delicate city. They were sneaky little creatures, but very kind and generous to help, for their sly nature benefitted them in combat. The king peacock became good friends with the leader of the Fox clan and the peacock daughter, a petite young peahen named Fan Ni Sha, became best friends with Si Lai, the daughter of the Fox leader.

For many years, the two clans had perfect balance for each other, the Foxes defending the city and the Peacocks providing them with their medical plants and flowers for their services. And in between those years, the friendship with Si Lai and Fan blossomed and grew into a sisterly relationship.

But it wasn't until someone stole a priceless aquamarine jewel from the Peacocks and the king pointed at the Fox leader, who was the only being besides the Peacocks to access their fortunes, but he had no evidence of taking and was thus proven innocent. The king forgave him and forgot about it, but it was until the Fox leader suddenly died and Si Lai, for some apparent reason, took all her anger out on the Peacocks. To their allies. _To her best friend._

She went out to the Forest of Prosperity for no reason, and without anyone to stop the Fox Army from the fragile city, all the Peacocks and their citizens could do was to just sit and hope that the madness ends. The king ordered his own troops not to attack, for he had peaceful morals and would not fight against his allies for a reason he doesn't know of.

But unfortunately, Si Lai took the life of the king and little number of citizens. Though, lucky for the rest of the citizens and the queen and her daughter, they all hid in a secret grotto away from the brutal rampage. Fan's father was never seen again. Even her mother died from starvation as the rampage went on, Fan hoping that it would end soon. But the whole event took about a month, and during the last few days of it, the family servant, Qiu Qiu, a gecko, helped Fan regain her strength and move on. But Fan was afraid to see the aftermath of what her best friend has done to her innocent city. _Her innocent city. It was now hers._ But she was so young. So inexperienced to care for her people.

But when she saw the remains of the city, she realized that it was all in ruins. The buildings were cracked with the paint now looking drab, the grass black from burning fire and the trees on the streets, looking dead and hopeless. She couldn't dare to picture her people living in this condition and from that point forth, she was driving herself to bring her city back up, every little step at a time, even if she had to sell every little bit of her fortunes to be able to feed her citizens, it's all she could do.

What was once a courteous young peahen is now the multitasking, ever-busy ruler of the Forest of Prosperity. But there was never an easy day for her.

_Again…? _She thought to herself as she heard the shrill cries of Qiu Qiu outside of her tree house. She could no longer live in her palace because it would have covered a lot of expenses to repair it. Besides, Fan had used it to house and feed her citizens. She wasn't important; her people were. She remembered the many nights when she slept on an empty stomach and envied the people she spent money on for food. Here, she was housed by Lu Ke, a humble green tree viper who used to live in the Water Peacock clan island, but moved to the Forest of Prosperity after knowing about Fan's needing help. Also joining in, there's Ke Li Si, a python who used to live in the Musicians Village, but like Lu Ke, traveled here to be with his friends. It was hard to have many different personalities in one tree house, but in the end, they decide it's worth it.

_Ahh, what's he saying? Something about Robby? Who's Robby? I don't know a Robby… Wait… Rob… Robber…? Wait! ROBBERS? _Fan's head shot up from her standing-on-one-leg-sleeping pose and hurriedly scurried to the open window. She looked down to see her old friend, Qiu Qiu at the forest floor, still hollering at her.

"I'm sorry, I couldn't hear; did you say 'robbers'?" Fan yelled down to the frightened gecko.

"Yes! They're over at the jewelers'! You have to hurry!" Qiu Qiu yelled back, visibly shaking in anxiety.

"I'm sorry! Just give me a second!" Fan replied worriedly. This was a _wonderful _start for her day. How amazing…

"I already gave you two minutes, honey!" he yelled sarcastically as Fan raced back inside and shook Lu Ke, lazily sleeping coiled up on a bar on the ceiling.

"Lu Ke! Wake up! We have a job to do!" the urging peahen fussed at the viper's laziness.

But he just moaned. "Five more minutes…"

"Ah, heck no, dude. I already wasted two minutes of Qiu Qiu's time and I'm not wasting any longer. Ke Li Si! You, too!" she fussed over to the other sleeping reptile, curled up in a ball in the corner of the tree house. "_¡Andalé! _Come on!"

Ke Li Si moaned as well, only replying, "Could you turn the volume down a bit?"

Fan groaned. _I HAVE to go now…_

"Fine, but you better meet me over there. And if I don't see you there… _te voy a dar unos buenos, ¿eh?_" she said before she flew out the window as quickly as she could, leaving the two snakes and hoping that they would catch up.

"What did she say?" Lu Ke asked with a yawn.

"I don't know… something about buenos, or something…" Ke Li Si replied, already being compelled to sleeping again.

"Oh, good…" and they both were gone.

Fan flew all the way to the main plaza of the city and quickly spotted the robbers. _Why am I not surprised…?_ The foxes again. How much longer can this go? The whole city is already destroyed so why kick the dead horse even more?

But then she took a quick glance at the leader and it was none other than Si Lai's brother, Cai Ren. He always had a horribly mean look to him. His eyes were formed in a sly, evil expression, his body strong and stiff. His fur was filthy from dirty work, probably from orders from his big sister, and his teeth were gritting at the innocent citizens he was cornering.

He was always that way… Fan remembered when she was a little chick, she would play with Si Lai and her brother, but he would always cheat, tease Fan or even pluck out some of her feathers painfully. Si Lai would come to her defense and tell Cai Ren to stop. He would either fight with Si Lai, or just growl at her and scurry away. But that was a long time ago. Now, for some reason, Fan is Si Lai's enemy, and she can't protect her now from the merciless Cai Ren.

She then heard the devious fox talking to the defenseless citizens, the jewelers. He was demanding to give them all they had, but the manager, a pig, refused to give up his jewels. But sadly, his employees gave in and put all the jewels in a bag to hand it to Cai Ren. _How pathetic._ The manager thought so, too after seeing his workers' actions.

_I have to help them…_ Fan thought persistently and with a yell, she bolted right into Cai Ren and dug her talons into the fox's clothing and violently flapped her wings to balance herself. But Cai Ren acted quickly and with precision, he threw down the small peahen effortlessly and pointed her beak with his long polished sword. Fan looked directly at it and felt as if her heart had stopped. _Stupid move… incredible STUPID move!_

"Ah, what do we have here?" Cai Ren hissed as he examined Fan. "I remember you."

"What are you doing here, Cai Ren?" Fan replied, trying her hardest not to look afraid.

The fox just chuckled and said, "Si Lai wanted to have a little more fun on the city and appointed me to do the job. But I didn't know that the king's daughter actually made it."

Fan remembered those occasions where the foxes would just come for no reason without a leader, but this time, with Cai Ren, he could start another rampage in the next minute. But he wouldn't waste his time on an already trashed city. All he wanted now are the jewels.

"You better leave those people alone…" Fan said, as if not listening to Cai Ren's reply to her previous question._ Where on earth are they?_

Cai Ren laughed. "I'm not that easy." He said coldly.

Before Cai Ren could slice her neck, Fan flew upwards and as she did so, Cai Ren ordered his troops to shoot her with their arrows. Using the trees as her defense, she kept on asking herself furiously, "Lu Ke and Ke Li Si, I'm gonna_ kill you!"_

Back at the tree house, both Lu Ke and Ke Li Si were still in a quiet slumber. But once again, Qiu Qiu shattered the peaceful silence as he climbed up inside the tree house.

"Lu Ke! Ke Li Si! What the heck are you doing in here?"

Lu Ke was struggling to keep his sleepy eyes open and asked, "We're sleeping. Can't we just get a decent sleep around here?"

"But Fan! She's already out there fighting Cai Ren and you're having a siesta here!"

Ke Li Si is still in the process of waking up. "Huh, Fan?"

"Yes, Fan! She's risking her life out there _waiting_ for you two to help her out, but you're just sleeping in!"

Lu Ke's eyes finally opened in surprise and immediately came to his senses. "Oh, no! Fan! Come on, Ke Li Si, we have to help her!"

"What? I'm still processing all this..." Ke Li Si grumbled.

"Fan's in trouble and we're just sitting here like lazy idiots!"

"What?" Ke Li Si yelled, his neck shooting up.

"Do you understand Chinese? Fan's in trouble and we have to help her!" Lu Ke groaned.

"Well, what are we doing here? Let's go!"

"Hurry to her! She's in deep trouble!" Qiu Qiu yelled as they slithered out of the tree house and on the path to the jewelers'.

It was a good thing for Fan to stay in that tree because the foxes already used their whole supply of arrows, which are now stuck on the tree. At first, Fan felt relieved for this until Cai Ren started clawing his way up to the tree to get her. She was panting violently, hoping that for just a chance, she would get out of this alive, but then she had other thoughts that she would share the same fate as her parents: killed by the foxes whom were once their allies.

But as Cai Ren inched closer, he stopped suddenly as if the world somehow froze. Fan stole a glance at the fox and saw that he was being pulled down from the tree. She leaned closer and spotted Ke Li Si grabbing at Cai Ren's leg with great force. Lu Ke was holding off the other fox troops. Fan was completely relieved, but also furious.

"What the heck happened, man? I was so close to being _DEAD!"_ Fan shouted from up the tree, sliding down carefully to join in.

"Yeah, sorry, Qiu Qiu kinda let us know about it again, so…" Lu Ke said as he was busy biting some of the troops with non-fatal venom that would paralyze them temporarily.

"But at least we're here!" Ke Li Si reassured once again, holding his grip on Cai Ren, but carefully. One rule Fan had in her city was that no person is to be killed but put to justice. She hated to have the thought of killing someone for a crime. So instead they were just put to jail for their misdeeds.

But then Cai Ren untangled himself from Ke Li Si and quickly ran away with his goods at hand. As he mysteriously appeared, he slyly disappeared into the forest.

"Yeah… but you guys were here late…" Fan said disappointingly.

There was a silence when the citizens emerged to examine the aftermath of the scene. There were gasps, cries, all negative. And Fan just stood where she was, looking down, furious at herself.

Lu Ke then slithered up to her and said, "We're sorry, but—"

"No, no. It's not your fault. It's me."

And with that, she started walking the other way, ignoring the citizens' side conversations of what just happened. Lu Ke, just looked back at her, startled. _Why is she upset with herself?_ He soon slithered up with her.

"Where are you going…?

"M'going to squander in self-pity…" Fan mumbled.

"Look, if it's anyone's fault, it's ours. Look, we—"

"No, it's mine." Fan interrupted. "I think that even _if _you two came on time, we still would've lost… oh, who am I kidding? I'm NOT cut out in doing this job. Being the _duchess_ of the Forest of Prosperity. More like the _Forest of Preposterity_. I can't simply do this anymore. It's hard…"

"Well, we'll try again next time."

"And what about the next time? And the next? And the next after that? Every little time I try to bring this city back up, it just backfires right when those stupid foxes make it worse. We keep on losing a large part of the city because of them! If I were just more experienced to protect everyone… _augh!"_

Fan turned the other way so Lu Ke wouldn't see her.

"Fan, we know you're trying…"

"But do _they_ know? The citizens? _Do they know?"_ she said with anger. "You don't know how many times they came to my doorstep to complain on and on about cleaning up the society before you and Ke Li Si came along. It was so frustrating!"

"Oh, don't care about what the citizens think." Qiu Qiu said as he stepped into the conversation.

"But I should. How can I not listen if I have to reach to their expectations? I'm telling you, I suck at protecting the city. We might as well give up and surrender to the foxes."

"Listen to yourself, Fan. You're thinking this much because you work too hard. If you just gave yourself some rest, then you can probably come up with a solution."

"Yeah, like I can sleep like a kitten tonight when any robbers can come again. Relaxation is the _last _thing on my mind. I might suck at leading this place, but I'm not taking any chances of losing any more people for the concept of leisure."

"Really? Look at you Fan." Qiu Qiu gestured to her. "You tell me that you've never had a good night's sleep. You also tell me that you don't eat much."

"Because the citizens come first."

"I know that, and you have a compassionate heart to do that. But do you care about yourself?"

"Of course I do, but—"

"Buuut…?"

"But I still think that the _citizens _come first."

"Well, think about it; you don't seem to take care of yourself, what with eating and sleeping… you need to take a load off. Think about your daughter, Fan."

_Her daughter. _Her sweet little Mi Lao. She can't bear to know that her own daughter thinks her mother wouldn't take time for herself, why would she take time for her? _She needs me…_

"I do think about her… but this is much greater than you think, Qiu Qiu…" Fan sighed. "This is a _city._ You know that. You served my parents. They knew how to work things around here in its best times. But now it's up to me. _I am trying my best._ I am trying my very best for myself and the people… and my daughter."

Qiu Qiu only shrugged and replied, "I just hope you're doing the right thing."

"I'm trying my best to."

Qiu Qiu walked away, leaving Lu Ke and Fan.

"So what do we do, then?"

Fan sighed again before replying, "Oh, I don't know… I'm trying to come up with something, but… geez, it's so hard…"

"It must be… to care for a city… yourself… and Mi Lao."

Fan then startled and lifted up her head straight. "Mi Lao! Oh, how can I be so stupid?"

"Late again?"

"For the hundredth time already! Geez, she's going to be mad at me again!"

"Well, Qiu Qiu is right for one thing… work is taking over your life, Fan." Lu Ke said lastly before Fan already flew away to pick up her little daughter from school.

Mi Lao sat on the steps of a small school all alone. This wasn't the first time her mother came late to pick her up from school. She did get upset about it, but always understood that it was her mother's duty to protect the city, but she wished that she would pay more attention to her daughter for just a moment.

People thought of it odd for Mi Lao, a kitten, to be the daughter of Fan Ni Sha. But Fan didn't care whether or not her decision to keep her was crazy; she just cared if she was safe and loved. She found her in a small eroded temple stuffed in a bag, presumably left to die. But when she first saw the little black fluff of fur, she fell in love with the little newborn kitten and decided to keep her as her adopted daughter.

As Mi Lao grew, she proved to be a smart, sassy and lively kitten that Fan was increasingly proud of. But now that these were hard times for her since her mother's been working so hard with the city, she occasionally got into fights with the other schoolmates and got in trouble often, trying to get her mother's attention.

But to her now, it doesn't seem that she should keep trying to demand attention. She knew what was going on with her mother's life and learned that she should live with it.

She shuffled her feet paws on the dirt, trying to entertain herself before she heard faint wing-flapping sounds coming closer to her. She saw her mother, and then looked back down again.

Fan stared at her daughter with so much grief that if she had only one wish, it would be that the city would be in immediate order so she could spend some quality time with her daughter. But she knows that even the greatest hope can't be achieved so easily. She got even madder at herself for that. Out of all the responsibilities she's got, her daughter's her number one. But what made her feel guiltier was that fact that Mi Lao wasn't looking at her at all.

"Hi, Mi Lao." Fan greeted, trying to be as carefree and loving to her daughter as she could, but knew that she wouldn't buy it. Not even she bought it.

"Hi, mom…" Mi Lao replied. She slipped off the step and walked slowly towards her mother, still looking down at the floor. She envied her classmates, whose parents came on time to pick them up, whose parents had the time to be with them. She wished that had that with her mother.

They walked back to the tree house silently, Mi Lao walking a full foot apart from her mother. Fan grew sorrowful at this. The more she worked, the more their mother-daughter relationship kept on fading. She remembered before when it was much easier before the foxes messed around with the city when they wanted. She remembered those busy nights when she would come to Mi Lao's room and she would tell her made-up stories that she loved so much. She remembered when even though she was tired from those days, she would manage to be with her little kitten. But with the city being demanding for attention more than ever, those times were no longer there anymore. Fan worried for what might come for the future.

When they finally arrived, Lu Ke and Ke Li Si were already there as well and were lying on the ceiling bars, stealing a glance at Mi Lao as she depressedly walked across the main room to her bedroom.

Fan wanted to do something for her; maybe cook her favorite food or just to have a chance to tell her a story just like before, despite how busy she is.

"Mi Lao, you want something to eat before you go to your room?" Fan asked nervously, hearing a slight shudder in her voice.

"I'm not hungry." Mi Lao replied sadly and entered her bedroom, shutting the curtain "door". Her mother's not welcome in her presence tonight.

Fan groaned as she sat at a nearby table and Lu Ke and Ke Li Si looked at her.

"I'm SUCH a _horrible _mother, guys."

The two snakes said nothing, for it was true. There was no denying it.

"But you can try to do better." Ke Li Si said reassuringly.

"How? No matter how much I try, she's still disappointed at me. You saw what happened right now." Fan said, looking the other way so the two wouldn't see her tearing up.

"Well… Lu Ke, any ideas?" Ke Li Si asked to the viper next to him.

"Well, try to make up some time for her."

"Guys as much as I want to say I could, I can't. I wish that that stupid, unreasonable rampage never happened… I wouldn't be the target in this mess."

Another silence followed.

"You know how much I care about my daughter… I love her so much that I don't want to hurt her. But I'm ALREADY scarring her. She's so very young for Pete's sake! She's six! If this goes on, she'll break herself. I don't want to see that happening to my baby. I also don't want my own daughter to hate me for the rest of her life."

Then Lu Ke remembered something. He once heard that the Furious Five were willing to give kung fu lessons to anyone and them being masters, they could effortlessly protect the Valley of Peace, which is slightly bigger that the Forest of Prosperity.

"Well, I've got an idea…"

"Lu Ke, I already told you… countless times, I can't—"

"The Furious Five."

"What?"

"They can help us. They can train us so we can become stronger to better protect the city."

"But I can't leave… I can't—"

"Stop making excuses, Fan. This is an opportunity. Take Mi Lao with us, too. It'll probably make you have your mother-daughter bond again. It will be much easier for us."

Fan thought about it for a moment. She could volunteer Qiu Qiu to take over, for he was more relaxed and could probably do a great job while she's away. And the fact about taking Mi Lao with them could be effective. She would take any opportunity to reshape her relationship with her daughter.

Without saying anything else, not even mentioning Lu Ke's idea, Fan walked towards Mi Lao's room and slowly, but carefully, set aside the curtain to go through the doorway and spotted her daughter sleeping soundly. She glanced around the room, filled with kung fu posters and plushies, including a huge poster of the Dragon Warrior on the ceiling. She remembered when mi Lao asked her many times for kung fu lessons and she promised her so, but nearly forgot that promise. This would mean a lot to her. It was a huge sacrifice to leave her city to train herself to better protect it, but she just has to do it, for her sake, for the city's sake… _for her daughter's sake._

A single tear streamed down the peahen's face and shook her head. "_You'll have your wish granted, Mi Lao… my baby._"

She closed the curtain and returned to the two snakes, shill waiting for an answer.

"So?" Lu Ke asked.

Fan sighed and brushed away an incoming tear. She recollected herself and looked at her friends right in the eyes. "Someone call Xin Chai. We have to deliver a message to the Jade Palace"

Shen finally made it to the Valley of Peace without being found, but suffered a few scratches along the way. He tried his best to not make one sound, but the _clink_ of his metal talons made it difficult to not make any noise.

He looked around and figured that everyone's asleep at this hour, lucky for him. But still, anyone could come out of their houses any second tonight and he's done for. But he managed to pass the houses and came across the endless-looking stairs. _No._ It'd be impossible to walk up those steps and NOT make any noise. He looked around him once more, and decided on the crazy thought. _Fly up there._

It was too late to reconsider; he already opened his pure white winds and started gliding upwards, looking down every now and then to see if anyone's looking. To his luck, there was no sign of life on sight.

He made it to the top, relieved of his efforts. Unfortunately for him, the panda wasn't seen anywhere, so he chose to just scope the place out and just rest a bit.

Po was eating dinner with the Furious Five and was sharing stories about him when he was a baby when his father, Mr. Ping found him for the fun of it.

"I just wonder what you looked like as a baby. You must have been adorable!" Viper said sweetly.

"Is it true that you didn't like pants as a baby?" Crane asked.

"How many times did Mr. Ping feed you?" Monkey asked.

"Slow down, guys. I'll probably ask dad sometime for a more detailed story. He was kind of to the point when I first asked him." Po said, his mouth full of noodle soup.

"Gosh, I'm full, but luckily I still got room for dessert." Mantis said happily.

"You know, dad had another dessert besides the tofu dessert. He taught me how to make a peach salad." Po said proudly.

"Oh, I would love to have the taste of peaches now." Tigress purred.

"Try to jack some from the Peach Tree of Wisdom! Shifu won't notice." Mantis said, grinning.

"You sure?" Po asked.

The Five said he should go, eagerly waiting for him to get the ingredients for a well-deserved dessert.

"Okay, then. I'll be back." Po said as he walked out the kitchen door.

Shen was already bored looking around the place until he came upon a peaceful looking tree. It was filled with blossoms and soft-looking fuzzy peaches. Boy, was Shen starving to have something nice and juicy now. He figured he deserved something delicious after his long trek. He clawed his way up the peach tree and carefully picked off a fresh peach from a limp. He dug his beak into the soft, fleshy and juicy goodness that he was desperate for in so long.

He soon finished the peach, leaving only the huge seed. He threw it down and craved another. He found and picked another peach and devoured it, savoring the sweet, tangy taste.

After that, he picked another, and in the middle of eating it, he heard footsteps approaching. He braced himself and tried to hide behind the bushes from whoever's coming. He then saw a blob of black and white fur and realized that it's the panda he's looking for.

_Try to handle it nicely, Shen. You can do it. _He readied himself by raising his lance in front of him, cautious if the panda would try to attack him on sight. He bet his life on it. But he'll try not to hurt the panda too much if he did think about attacking.

As soon as he came closer, Shen realized that he was panting in frustration. From waiting any longer to approach him. But he had to be patient and wait for the right time to confront the panda. He saw him walk up to the tree and he started picking a few peaches and placing them into a small basket. He wondered how this chubby panda could've beaten him now seeing him calmly picking peaches. He envied his peacefulness and calmness. Then he tried to push those thoughts away, remembering Oogway's words, "Every random act of kindness goes a long way." He can't manage to do much, but he's got to try.

But that opportunity was fading away when he saw Po finishing his peach picking and started to sneak eating one out of the basket, picking an extra to take the devoured peach's place. Shen couldn't wait any longer. He carefully glided down the tree and presented himself with his lance, ready for any attack.

"_Panda…_" he said slowly.

Po turned around curiously and spotted the albino peacock in the moonlight. _Is this a mirage? How is that possible?_ Then he did something someone would do if they saw a dead person in front of them.

"A GHOST! IT'S A GHOST!" Po shouted, throwing the basket of peaches in the air, scattering the peaches all over the place. "SHEN'S GHOST HAS COME TO HAUNT MEEE!"

Shen shook his head at the gullible panda as he started to run in endless circles to nowhere. In an elegant move, he slid towards Po and pounced on him, his talons catching the panda by the throat.

"I'm not a ghost, you _stupid panda!"_ he yelled.

Po was even more horrified as he looked into the peacocks deep red eyes, and even more so with his razor-sharp talons grabbing onto his neck fat.

"How_ are you alive?_"Po asked, panicked out of his life.

"Long story." Shen replied, narrowing his eyes.

"Long story, huh? Well, can you tell me this _story_ **off **me?" Po asked urgently.

Shen realized what he did and agreeing to his statement, he climbed off the panda's round stomach and onto the ground. He never knew that his stomach would be _THAT_ squishy. He thought his feet would sink into his fat.

Before Po could be scared off, he started his explanation, "When I was crushed by my cannon, I went to a mysterious place. I saw my parents, and then I saw him."

"Who?" Po asked, already calming down a little. It startled him a bit that the peacock who had destroyed his childhood and almost killed him is now talking to him casually.

"A fellow named Master Oogway. _He_ was the one who gave me back my life. The catch is that… I have to figure out what was blinding me out and what I have to discover, or something like that." Shen said and stopped before he continued, "And I need your help."

Po stiffened. "_My_ help?"

"Yes, your help." Shen confirmed. "I want to achieve this… peace, oh, what you call it."

"Inner peace?"

"Yes, that. I want to know how one can achieve inner peace."

Po didn't say anything, hoping that this isn't a trick.

"You're not joking with me right? Is this a plot?"

"No joke. No plot. I just want to know…"

Po thought about it for a moment, and thought that the peacock was being truthful this time. If it were different, Shen would've killed him right now. He remembered telling him about peace before his death and now was his chance to show him.

"Well, then… Congrats. You're my very first student." Po said with a warm smile.

"Ahh, don't get started with that nice-welcoming person routine, I've already had a hard day."

"Just rest, Shen."

"Where, though?"

Po thought about it. "I remember this abandoned shed in the middle of the stairs to the Jade Palace. You can hide there."

"Hide?"

"Yeah, well, how would Master Shifu and the Five react if they discover you. They would totally kill you on sight."

"It's because I look hideously intimidating and threatening…" Shen said sarcastically.

"Well, you can hide there, okay?"

"Fine."

"Should I find it for you?"

"I can find it on my own, panda."

"_By the way_, my name's Po."

Shen just glanced at the panda and sighed.

"I prefer panda."


	3. Chapter 2

In the City of Warriors, the main place for the Fox Clan, the sky was painted with hot pinks and bright yellows, as if matching the menacing city. The sun shone behind clouds over the humid surroundings.

Si Lai was in her family room, polishing her favorite sword that was given by her father; somewhere she remembered she used to spend time with her father alone. She used to be taught here, lectured, and given moral lessons here. There were too many memories here, but she manages to get by with those memories, only to come to hate the peacocks who betrayed her family. Hating Fan for betraying _her._

_Fan… _Her best friend…_ Why did they do it? My father never did anything to them; I never did anything to HER… We were loyal to them and they simply betrayed us. They deserved their fate… all of them._ Her thoughts ceased when he heard footsteps coming. She stopped polishing her sword and looked across the room to see who's coming to disturb her. It was only Cai Ren alone. This is odd. She remembered she sent troops with him to the Forest of Prosperity, but to see only her brother come back raised her suspicions.

"Where are the rest, Cai Ren…?" Si Lai asked calmly. She's been under the weather lately and seems to have a short temper. Time to time, she tries to fix this by gaining patience by doing quiet activities, but every time, she would think of Fan and throw a fit.

Cai Ren stood, saying, "Sister, they all fell behind."

Si Lai was disappointed, "And you left them?"

"Si Lai, what can I do? I'm only trying to save myself."

She exploded, yelling, "NO FOX GETS LEFT BEHIND! WE'RE supposed to be the STRONGER ones!"

"Si Lai, I have news, though." Her brother said casually, as if the troops never mattered to him.

"No! We are not finished! How could you—"

"Fan's alive." Cai Ren spit out.

Si Lai stood silently, shocked by those words. _Fan's alive? How could this happen? I led my best troops to destroy those Flower Peacocks and she's still__** alive**__..?_

"Cai Ren, I know you. _Don't_ start playing games with me."

"It's true, sister. She's alive. She tried to attack me, but I got away. She also had two snake buddies with her."

Si Lai didn't care who were at her side now. She only paid attention to the proof of Fan's existence._ This can't be…_

"She was probably hiding from us during the siege. But I'm sure that her parents are gone permanently."

Si Lai was still pondering this over. "Is that so?"

"Yes, Sister Si Lai. She's still around."

The vixen stood up to walk over to the main throne room and came upon a glass case in the middle of the room. In it was a single peacock feather.

"Think about it, Cai Ren. After all these years, what do you think Fan is planning right now?"

"Probably nothing; you've never seen the city since our attack. We've destroyed it down that she probably doesn't even have time to plan."

"That's probably what she'd make you think, like her father… making himself seem so innocent and modest that the blasted stone he assumed we stole didn't matter anymore. And yet…" she opened the glass case and retrieved the single feather, so iridescent and beautiful it looked as if it were hand-crafted. It was mostly a silvery blue and the eyes were of gold colors. "He managed to deceive us. You brought me his feather" she gestured to it, "to prove it to me. And not him alone; also his wife, and their daughter, that peahen you saw today."

"What do you say we do then, Si Lai?" Cai Ren asked, grinning an evil smirk.

Si Lai looked up at him directly and said, "You won't do anything." She stroked the feather once more. "I'll deal with her myself…"

At the Jade Palace, a tiny hummingbird named Xin Chai arrived to deliver his message, a tiny scroll, from Fan to the Furious Five of her request. He made it that same day, just an hour after being assigned to deliver since he was hyper on sweet nectar. He saw the palace doors closed shut and was disappointed until a dark grey goose named Zeng stumbled into his path.

"Oh! Oh, my goodness…, you surprised me…" the goose said. "May I help you?"

The tiny hummingbird nodded and said in a rushed, high-pitched voice, "Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! _Yes you can! _I was s-sent here by Miss-Miss Lady F-Fan! Sh-She has a request that n-needs to be read upon im- im-_immediately!"_

Zeng received the scroll from the hummingbird's miniscule feet. "I'll hand this to Shifu, don't worry. Now would—"

"_Oh, look! Flowers!"_ the hummingbird exclaimed with glittery eyes and swarmed off to where he wanted to be. Zeng watched awkwardly and walked inside to show Shifu the message.

He found him sitting on the far end of the training room, relaxed and having inner peace. There were candles set around him, creating a peaceful glow contrasting the rest of the dark room.

"M-Master Shifu?" Zeng said, trying not to disturb the red panda, but there was no answer.

The small goose walked over closer and tries again, saying, "Master Shifu? I have, ehh… something for you here. You want to, umm… see it?"

Shifu still didn't answer. Zeng thought all this was awkward. He waddled closer until he came right beside him. Shifu was calmly repeating "inner peace", his eyes shut and smiling.

"Master?" he said once more. Nothing at all.

Zeng's finally had it with this. "MASTER SHIFUUU!"

The red panda was already awakened. "Oh, good evening to you, Zeng. I didn't notice you there."

Zeng took deep breaths. "I…. know."

"So, what do you need?" Shifu asked as he started blowing out the nearby candles.

"Well, a messenger came by and he wanted to send you this. It's from a, uhh… Lady Fan or something." Zeng replied, struggling for words. He handed the scroll to Shifu.

The red panda opened it and nodded as he read through the words,

Dear Master Shifu,

I have heard that you and the Furious Five are conducting kung fu classes for those who want to learn. I, two friends and my daughter want to learn your techniques to fight off those who are against us, for we have hard times at my city, the Forest of Prosperity. Please teach us your ways, for we will be forever grateful to be taught to be stronger to protect our troubled city.

Thank you,

Lady Fan Ni Sha of the Forest of Prosperity

"Hmm…" Shifu thought as he read through the words. "Yes, we've been… a bit slow in our training program. This is good. Excuse me, Zeng."

"It's no problem, Master."

"Thank you."

Shifu called all the members of the Furious Five to the training hall, a hassle to some of them except for Tigress, who's ready for anything in the middle of the night. They all made a circle around Shifu, bowed and listened, but someone was missing.

"Master Tigress, where's Po?" Shifu asked politely.

Tigress sighed, "He said he was coming, but I think he went on to take an extra nap."

Shifu moaned, "What is is with bears and sleep?"

"Pandas don't even hibernate… do they?" Mantis asked, sitting on Monkey's shoulder.

"I don't know. I know that pandas are 'bear cats', so probably he's got lazy cat blood in him." Crane joked.

"Oh, stop it you guys. He'll get up." Viper said sweetly, and then beamed. "Oh, look! There he is now!"

The group gazed at the sliding doors and saw the panda walk lazily to where they were. He yawned and scratched his behind. Monkey tried to stifle a giggle. Tigress gave him a look and he stopped.

"So, what's this all about…?" Po said, his eyes heavy with sleep. "Look, if this meeting's about my midnight snacks, don't worry, I haven't eaten anything in the past three nights. I'm still working on it."

"Po, that's not the matter of this meeting." Shifu said seriously.

"Ooohh…" Po said with a gain of understanding.

"Then what is it, Master?" Tigress asked.

"I have received a letter from the Forest of Prosperity." Shifu commenced.

"Forest of Prosperity? Never heard of it." Crane added.

"It's a city far from here. It's a bit farther than Gongmen City." Shifu continued. "I've heard that many years ago, about a decade, the city was under a horrible threat. They are still, but the leaders of this city want to put an end to it."

"So, what's the point to this?" Mantis asked.

"The point is that the person who's sent us this request is Lady Fan Ni Sha of that city." Shifu finished.

"So, the actual ruler of the city needs _our_ help?" Crane asked.

"Not only her. Also two friends and her daughter."

"Aww," Viper said sweetly. "Her daughter's coming, too."

"Imagine." Crane added.

"So you all must be ready for her arrival." Shifu commanded. "Get the spare rooms ready. You all know how long it is to fully train one to master kung fu."

"Yes, Shifu. We'll do our best to please them."

"Yeah, we will. I just wonder what they all look like." Po said eagerly.

"Well, from what I know about the city, the main rulers are traced from ancestors of peacocks. I'm guessing that she's a peahen." Shifu described. The whole group looked at him silently. "Don't worry, she seems nice and polite in the letter, I bet she is in real life. It's not like she's another Lord Shen or anything…"

"Oh, man, remember him?" Crane said as he did a facepalm at the memory.

"How can we not? The guy's a psycho!" Mantis exclaimed. "I just wonder what his deal was."

"Well, he was a real threat to China. He had to be stopped. How much deeper can you get to the guy?" Tigress replied.

As Po listened to the talk about Lord Shen, he started to feel disappointed. They don't know what his problem was. He was basically the only one who had sympathy for the troubled peacock. How would he feel if he overheard them talking about him? Po doesn't know, but one thing he knows is that he can change Shen, but it will take a long time to do so with his short temper and his lack of patience.

"Well, he's gone anyway, so…" Monkey said, much to Po's relief that the subject ceased.

"Let's get the rooms ready for our new trainees." Crane said happily. "We want them to be satisfied of our services to them."

"Definitely," Viper said. "Just imagine; 'The Furious Five help Lady Fan Ni Sha of the Forest of Prosperity'. It's surprising we're assisting royalty."

"Yeah, it's not like every day we get an opportunity like this." Mantis grinned.

"Hey, hey. Come on guys, remember… it doesn't matter if she's from royalty; we have to treat her like everyone else. Just think of her as any other person."

"Right you are, Po. We're just excited." Crane explained.

"I am, too, guys."

"So, then I will send Lady Fan Ni Sha a letter or her confirmed request. They shall come in three weeks. In the meantime, we shall be ready for them. Is that clear, students?" Shifu asked, displaying a sure smile of confidence in his students.

"Yes, Master." They all said, bowing to their Master.

"Very good, then," Shifu nodded. "Get to rest and we shall start preparing tomorrow. Three weeks."

At that, everyone bid each other goodnight and slept in the rest of the quiet night, except Po.

The giant panda raced to check on the peacock to make sure he didn't run off somewhere and that he was safe. It's not like he doesn't trust him, but he was worried that he would be found and attacked. Besides, it doesn't hurt to give the troubled bird some time to talk, right? He made sure to be as quiet as possible since Shen has a pretty short temper.

When Po came around to the abandoned shed that is totally ignored, he saw the peacock lying on the floor. As he came closer quietly, he noticed that his eyes were open, just looking into the far distance. He's awake. Good thing, or else Po would have to wake up a very angry Shen, so this was fortunate.

Then he heard him let out a loud, long sigh. Po took a few steps back, almost afraid of being noticed.

"Panda, I know you're here…" Shen hissed. "Could you leave me alone?"

Po tried to compose himself after the surprise and replied with a smile, "Oh, yes, of course. I just wanted to check on you."

"Oh, yes… to check on the weak peacock… I see." He said back, placing his head underneath his wing to have silence.

"No, no… I was just coming to see if you're all comfy-d up for the night and everything, so…"Po said kindly. "It's not like—"

"Look, panda, would you just leave me alone? I traveled for many miles, and being the albino peacock I am, it was really hard for me." He snapped. Po was startled for a bit, and then felt remorse for the bird. Shen hid his face again under his wings. "Everything's hard…"

Po didn't say anything. He wasn't sure if he was afraid to say the wrong thing that would hurt Shen or get himself a stabbing, but he knew that this time, he had to give the peacock some quiet time. He's traveled all by himself and deserves some rest.

"Okay, Shen… goodnight." Po said lastly, and walked back up the stairs.

_Goodnight…_ there was never a goodnight for Shen. Ever since his exile, he couldn't have a good night's sleep without having a nightmare of the look of his parents' faces after he attacked the panda village. The parents who betrayed him. He could take a nap now and then, but overall, his lack of sleep gave him a short temper. If he closes his eyes, he fears seeing his nightmares again.

Three days later, Fan received a message back from Master Shifu regarding the confirmation of her request. At the sight of the scroll, she grew joyful for the first time in years. She raced to the tree house to share her great news to her friends after doing her daily check of the city.

She flew through the window of the small house and greeted the two snakes with a smile. Obviously, they were curious.

"Well, _you_ look happy this morning." Ke Li Si commented.

"Yeah," Fan chuckled at herself. "I know, it's weird, but look at this."

She handed the two the scroll that was given to her that morning. As they gazed at it, Lu Ke noticed the sender.

"Master Shifu?" he exclaimed. "You mean—?"

"Yes!" Fan said excitedly, eagerly playing with her wing feathers. "We're going to be trained by _kung fu masters!"_

"_Really?_ When?" Ke Li Si asked.

"It says in three weeks, or," Fan said as she glanced at the date the letter was written. "This was sent three days ago, so we got two weeks and four days."

"More than two weeks?" Lu Ke whined. "I can't wait that long! Oh, I can't wait!"

"I can't either, Lu Ke, but the day will come, I'm sure." Fan said with a smile. "In the meantime, you guys should pack."

"But what about Mi Lao?" Ke Li Si asked with an eye squinting.

"Oh, she's going to make it a surprise for her." Lu Ke grinned. He was known for his gift of being psychic, but unfortunately, he can't see anything in the future that'll happen in more than five minutes.

"Gosh, Lu Ke, you and your psychic powers." Fan rolled her eyes.

"Don't be surprised."

"So, yeah, I'm going to make it a surprise for her." She explained again to Ke Li Si. "So _don't _spoil anything, please. If she sees you packing, don't mention anything about where we're going, okay?"

"Yeah, we got it." Lu Ke winked.

"Of course." Ke Li Si nodded.

"Great, so…" Fan looked around the tree house, looking at the many belongings of the two snakes. "Good luck on packing."


	4. Chapter 3

As the days passed in the Forest of Prosperity, the three protectors of the city packed their belongings, pretending not to notice Mi Lao's suspicions. Often she would come and ask either Ke Li Si and Lu Ke what was going on and they would simply answer, "Home improvements." Of course, Mi Lao loved how the tree house looked and preferred it the way it is, but if they wanted to, she'd let them. But when her mother started packing her belongings out of her room, her suspicions grew. But even so, Fan, Ke Li Si and Lu Ke kept the surprise a secret, hoping it would last until the big day.

It already passed two weeks and there were still four days left. Mi Lao was in school at the moment and the trio was cleaning up any dusty parts of the tree house to keep it clean while they're gone. Fan already told Qiu Qiu about their temporary stay in the Valley of Peace and he promised to keep the city safe while she's gone and to look after the tree house. Fan was glad to have someone like family to make some of her worries fade, but as she thought about leaving, she still fears of any invasion of the foxes soon without her presence. Pretty soon, she would have to announce her leaving to the city's citizens. Who knows if they would grow more suspicious than Mi Lao? How would they react? _Oh, who cares how they'd react? I'm doing this for them; to protect them._

"Ke Li Si," Fan called. "Mi Lao's pack is already finished, right?"

The python slithered over to the corner where all the packs are resting and found her blue bag. "Yeah, it is."

"Okay, good. I mean, four days left. I don't want to forget anything of Mi Lao's. She loves her kung fu stuff. Imagine how excited she'll be when we tell her."

"I can't imagine. It would probably be somewhere between screaming or just sheer craziness."

"I agree." Fan chuckled. "But I think she would enjoy it. You know her feistiness and what a tough cookie she is."

"I just wonder what kind of cookie." Lu Ke replied from his room. He was still busy packing, and probably the last one to finish. All Ke Li Si had to pack was his Guzheng instrument, for he can't part without music—ever.

"Probably an almond cookie. She's too sweet." Fan giggled. "But overall, back to the subject, I think this'll work. Y'know, between me and Mi Lao."

"There you go, Fan," Lu Ke said happily in the other room. "Look at it in the positive side."

"You guys know that I'm trying."

"It's good that you're trying." Lu Ke added as he emerged from his room carrying a huge bag behind him. Fan looked at him with such awkwardness that made her wonder what he's bringing along with him.

"Lu Ke?"

"Yes, Fan?"

"We're going to the Jade Palace. Not camping."

Lu Ke rolled his eyes. "Stop your teasing. This is my art stuff. I mean, I'm going to get bored in a new place when I'm not doing kung fu. You don't see me teasing you about what you're bringing."

"You don't have to." Fan said as she lifted her foot. "I'm just bringing these," she gestured to her many beaded bracelets that she used to make when she was a little peachick. They were tiny painted pebbles. Fan never cared for priceless jewels; she preferred to make her own by transforming simple pebbles into gorgeous accessories. It was how she got by. "… and this." She walked over to her bag, which was no bigger than Mi Lao's small bag and displayed her simple art supplies: brown-colored paints and her brush. That's it.

"Wow." Lu Ke said, his eyes wide. "No offense, but you're pack's so midget."

"Don't call my pack midget!" Fan gasped jokingly. "I'm just simple-minded."

"A little _too _simple-minded, maybe?"

Fan narrowed her eyes at Lu Ke. At times, she could be as feisty as her daughter.

"Okay, sorry." Lu Ke apologized as he dragged his bag to the corner. "But you deserved it after teasing my pack."

Both Fan and Ke Li Si started giggling.

"What?"

"Really," Ke Li Si said. "Your bag's ridiculously huge."

Lu Ke pouted. "Okay, I'll lessen the load."

"Good, because I have no idea how you'd manage to carry that thing in two days." Fan smiled, imagining the viper straining to pull the load while she and Ke Li Si wait up ahead.

"He probably wouldn't make it in five minutes." Ke Li Si joked.

"_Shaddup_." Lu Ke mumbled as he dragged his pack back to his room. "Oh, and Ke Li Si? Remember not to go over that crack in the floor."

The python looked confused. "Crack? What crack?"

"Ke Li Si! Watch out!"

"_Whoa!"_ He shouted as he nearly fell in a crack beneath the aging wood. He caught himself before falling into the high branches below.

Fan took a look at the hole that was once a minor crack and gulped.

"Maybe we _do _need some home improvements…"

During those two weeks, the Furious Five and Po started working on cleaning up the rooms to make it as homey and comfortable as possible for their new guests. The wooden floor was polished, corners were dusted, bed sheets were washed and dried, new lanterns were ordered; the Five wanted to make it look perfect for their new students to stay in.

The Five also thought things through for how many rooms were needed for the four guests. Remembering that Fan was bringing her daughter over, they all decided to give them both one room so they would be with each other. They two friends had their own separate rooms.

Soon, it seemed that everything was already perfect to the Five, but with Po, he had different matters other than the new trainees; he also had Shen to worry about.

Every day for the past two weeks since Shen's been staying in the secret hiding place beneath the shed near the Jade Palace, he came to check on him. He would also bring him some food so he could regain his energy. Every now and then, it was just fruits, but when Po noticed that the peacock enjoyed eating peaches than the other fruits he offered, he started serving him peaches instead. He thought it was a good start, until he tried to talk to him, but it ended up backfiring when Shen scolded at him to leave him alone again. Po figured that he'll be ready to start when he knows it. He even told him that. Shen would be open to Po when he felt like it, and it may not be today or tomorrow, or next year, but he will be ready sometime. He has confidence that it'll happen.

There's already two more days until the trainees arrive and Shen's noticed the commotion from where he hid the past two weeks and five days. He lifted his long neck to better hear what's going on up there in the Jade Palace. He had a keen sense of hearing.

"Hmm…" he was curious about this. He's been hearing orders from an old-sounding voice he assumed to be the main master of the joint, and some other voices he also guessed were the Five. But he never heard Po's voice.

Then to his surprise, he saw the chubby panda carefully walking down the stairs with his pudgy and stubby feet. He was holding a basket of peaches. _Oh, good. I'm starving._ Then he saw him slip and bounce down the stairs. He gave an odd look to this act. _That panda ought to lose some pounds…_

When he saw him coming towards him, Shen braced himself not to be sandwiched by the tubby bear, but thankfully, Po controlled himself and walked to the hiding place.

"Hey, Shen." Po said, smiling.

The peacock glanced at him with a disgusted look. "Hey…"

"So," Po mumbled as he brought out the peaches. "I kind of snuck out to get these for you, but it was no problem. I'm actually supposed to be up there."

"Uhh…" Shen said awkwardly. "Thanks?" he received the peaches and started nibbling at the skin. He had a habit of eating skin first and then the fruit itself.

"Good, huh?" Po grinned.

"Yeah, sure." Shen said, concentrating more on the food than the person talking to him. He was disappointed to see that the peaches were gone once he finished them. All he saw in the basket were the many peach seeds he coughed up.

"So, what's with everyone in there?" Shen asked, not like he cared.

"What?" Po asked, then realizing what the peacock was talking about. "Oh, that? What's going on up there?"

"Yes. What's going on? Someone's coming, or…?"

"Uh huh. We got a letter from someone to have kung fu classes, so we're getting ready to welcome them and stuff, y'know?"

"Ah," Shen nodded. "I see."

"But, I don't think you'd care, anyway."

"You're right."

Po chuckled. Shen stiffened. He never meant to make a joke.

"So, remember, Shen, whenever you're ready to start, I'm open, okay?" Po repeated like every other day.

"Okaaaaay…" the peacock said sarcastically. Then the panda stood up and started walking up the steps. It wasn't until after five steps, he started getting tired and held a hand to his back. Shen had to admit, that panda was funny-looking. He chuckled at the thought, but then frowned again as he laid down on the cold soil. _How am I going to do this? I don't even know if I'm ready yet._

He then had an idea. He decided to escape the hiding boundaries and calm himself down by walking around a bit. That's what most folks do, right? _But not now… I must wait till dawn._ And so he waited by taking a short nap since he didn't fall asleep the past night.

Everyone was ready to leave and Mi Lao is almost done with her day at school. _Two more days, _Fan thought to herself excitedly. _Two more days and we'll be there. We'll be stronger than we are now._

Lu Ke already lessened his belongings, which made Ke Li Si and Fan picture him better with the new size than the load before. At least it's more portable. Fortunately for Fan, Mi Lao still never questioned her about the unexplained packing. But she figured that now could be the time to tell her.

The trio brought their belongings down the tree house and onto the forest floor safely. But it seemed like bad timing when citizens started approaching with awkward looks on their faces as they eyed the packs.

"Umm…" Fan said nervously, looking worried at the crowd. She can't deal with this now. She has to see her daughter. "Lu Ke, Ke Li Si, could you…?"

"What is it, Fan?" Ke Li Si asked, concerned about the crowd.

"Could you two… tell them the news?"

"Sure, we'll…" the python saw more and more citizens coming. "We'll try."

"Go on, Fan." Lu Ke motioned her by shooing her with his tail. "Go to Mi Lao. We'll take care of this for you."

"Thanks guys."

At that, Fan flew away from the crowd before anyone else could stop her. As she looked back, she saw the two snakes slithering away to a better place to tell the news. She took a deep sigh of relief. She's already excited for the next days to come that she doesn't want to spoil it with any more drama. She flapped her wings harder to get to Mi Lao faster.

The school gong already rang. School is over for today. Mi Lao joined the other bunnies, goslings and piglets outside to be picked up. _It'll be just like every other day. I'm the last to go…_ she thought until she looked up and saw her mother; _her mother_ waiting for her right there. She couldn't believe it at all. _She's here?_

"Mom?" she said, coming close to tears.

"Come, Mi Lao." Fan replied with a kind smile. She waved her wing, indicating for her daughter to follow.

Smiling, the kitten ran by her mother's side, happy that for once, she had the time to come get her. But even so, they never said a word to each other. It was mostly because Fan was trying to figure out how to tell her daughter the surprise. _Uhh… Mi Lao... eh, daughter, honey… no too much names… uh… Mi Lao, you know how we were all packing and that we were doing it because of home improvements? Well… oh! Of course we need _some _home improvements; I mean, there's the hole in the floor from yesterday, but… oh, that's not the point. The point is… is that I'm an idiot… How do I tell her?_

"Mi Lao?" Fan asked softly. Her daughter looked up. Her yellow-green eyes were so beautiful, Fan loved them so much. She reminded herself how much she cared about her baby and that she would do anything to make her happy.

"Yeah, mom?" she said with her innocent and childlike voice. _If only she could be my little baby forever._

"Sweetheart," she began. _Here goes._ "Do you remember… back then… when you were so _into _the Furious Five—"

"I'm still into the Furious Five, mom."

"Of course," Fan giggled, making her feel a little better. "But do you remember when you used to beg me to take you… to some kung fu classes?"

She nodded.

"Well, it's hard for parents to decide things. There's one thing you must know forever, baby."

Mi Lao looked up at Fan.

"Whatever we decide, we choose because we love you. Or for me, because I love you. So much."

Mi Lao waited for more.

"I just want to make you happy, Mi Lao. I know that these last few years have been so very hard on you because of me. And… I want to make it up to you now."

"Cut to the… chase, mom?" Mi Lao said eagerly.

"Okay, sweetie." Fan cleared her throat. "We are all going to the Valley of Peace."

"…wha—"

"Yeah, we are all going to the Jade Palace. You, me, Ke Li Si and Lu Ke."

Mi Lao was silent and wide-eyed for five seconds until she squeaked, "All of us?"

"Yes, baby, all of us." Fan smiled.

"W-when…?"

"Well, we start walking over there, and in two days, we should be there."

As if by fate, a smile curved on the kitten's face and then she started giggling.

"So that's why-and the-and the-the things-home improvements-packing-_I'm going!"_ Mi Lao exclaimed excitedly. "Are all my things packed already?"

"You're all ready, honey." Fan chuckled.

"_Everything, mom?_" the kitten asked crazily while shaking her mother to and fro.

"Yes! Everything that belongs to you is packed! What are you? _¿Loca?" _Fan laughed as she saw more and more of her daughter's excitement.

"_Maybeeeee…!_" Mi Lao said.

"Yeah, maybe, right…" Fan rolled her eyes jokingly.

As they walked more to the tree house, the evening came, Fan explained the plans and everything Mi Lao had to know before they depart. As soon as they got there, Lu Ke and Ke Li Si were just approaching in a rushed manner. Fan wondered what was going on.

"What's wrong?" Fan asked the snakes.

"Oh, not much. We told them the news and they got a little ticked, but Qiu Qiu took care of it." Lu Ke explained.

"But if I were you, I would decide that we leave now before an angry mob comes. Qiu Qiu might stop them not, but not for long."

"Let me guess, they're mad at me for my decision because they think I don't care about them at all."

"Spot on. How'd you know?"

"Easy, I get that complaint all the time." Fan sighed disappointingly. "Yeah, we should go. I have no time to explain myself."

"Okay, we might have time to leave the city if we move now." Ke Li Si warned.

"_Vama-noose_." Fan said.

They all started their journey, Lu Ke the only one holding a lantern to light the way. Ke Li Si, Fan and Mi Lao were following behind.

Mi Lao started to notice the many bracelets on her mother's leg and was easily fascinated by them.

"Hey, mom. Did you make these?" she asked sweetly.

"Yeah, I made all of those bracelets when I was just a little peachick."

"They're very pretty." Mi Lao complimented.

"Yes," Fan smiled. "Especially the blue and green one. That one was my first bracelet. I remember showing it to my parents and they loved it from all the rest. It's, in my opinion, the most memorable one."

Mi Lao was silent for a moment before she admitted. "Mom, there's no blue and green bracelet."

Fan was startled. "Huh?"

"The bracelet you said? I don't see it."

"Maybe you just don't see it."

"Mom, I'm a cat. I have awesome sight in the dark and I don't see no blue and green bracelet on your leg."

"No," Fan looked around and started to panic. "Where is it?"

"Maybe you just dropped it, Fan." Lu Ke said soothingly.

"No, I didn't drop it, I swear."

"Don't worry. Try to retrace your steps and you'll probably find it."

"Something tells me I left it in the tree house." Fan said, her eyes narrowing.

"Well, try to hurry, okay?"

"No problem."

The small peahen flew away from the crowd and back to the tree house. It looked supremely empty and drab without anything in sight. No personality at all. Just an empty little house they're leaving for who knows how long. But it's for the best.

She looked around, but everywhere she looked, it was pitch black. She wished she had a light, but she tried to use her feet to be her eyes. She knew what the pebbled bracelet felt like and she was determined to find it very soon.

The room was very quiet. With the silence, she wondered how it would be like in a new territory, someplace she's never been before but only heard of. She knows it won't be the same, but with getting used to, she might like it. But first she needs to find the _dang _bracelet.

_Rustle._ Her head popped up at the sudden sound and turned her long neck around to see if anyone was around. She looked out the window frames. Nothing. She looked up in the trees. _Nothing._ She gave a shrug and continued to search. _Rustle._ She looked around again if anyone was fooling around with her. Again, there was nothing._ Absolutely nothing._

"Huh…" she whispered, and continued to search around some more.

Shen started to wake up from his nap, which did nothing to fix his lack of sleep and started to stretch. As he did so, he displayed his long, elegant train into a huge fan and relaxed, folding the white fan again. As he took a deep breath, he found it hard to open his eyes; they were heavy from sleep. As he looked around, he figured that now's the perfect time to have that walk he planned to have this evening. Before he started out, he gave himself a little shake to make his feathers a bit more comfortable and briefly groomed himself.

Then he flapped his wings and before he knew it, he was already high in the sky. He tried to be unseen by flying over treetops and low in flat valleys. All he wants tonight is just some fresh air to clear his mind for once.

Fan was still looking, but ended up frustrating with no results. It was one of her memories of her parents when she was in her youth; when she was small and young and believed that life were a fairytale. But she learned her lesson that life doesn't come the way you want it. And for her, it came unexpectedly in the most brutal way. She needed that bracelet to keep that memory… _or does she?_

"Oh, just forget it, Fan. You can never bring them back." She said. She's just making her friends wait for her more while she's just looking for a smeasly little bracelet. It's not worth it anyway.

She took a step to exit the tree house until he heard a _thump_ on the floor. She looked down, curious as to what the sound came from and walked around. Then she accidently stepped on something hard and smooth. There were many of them, but there was also a skinny piece of thread that binds the stones together. She lifted her foot and looked down. It was her bracelet. How could she not have found it a long time ago?

"Jewelry is very important to you peacocks, isn't it?" a voice said behind Fan. The voice was oddly familiar, yet it sounded more mature and feminine. _That voice is too familiar._

Fan turned around to see her finally since a decade. It was her. _Si Lai_. She looked a bit masculine, like she always had when they were kids. She was the most tomboyish girl she knew, but seeing her now made her feel more afraid of her. She was the one who killed her father. The one who destroyed her city and made her mother and several citizens die of starvation. The one who made everything happen without being told a reason.

Fan found it hard to breathe, for when she looked at the fox, all she could see in her mind was the disaster on the city she's caused. She saw all the fire, the destruction, the murder of her father. _Seeing him on the floor_. She thought she was going to be sick.

"Wow, Fan." Si Lai grinned. "The years have passed by… what? A good ten years? A decade? And look at you. Miserable yet still alive."

Fan just stared at her ex-best friend and her breathing became harder, more difficult. Her eyes widened with fear. _I'll be dead very soon…_

"You actually thought you could get away from, did you?"

"_For what? For what exactly?"_ Fan yelled, which she couldn't tell whether it's from fear or courage.

Si Lai's face grew stern now and serious. "I know what your father did. Remember ten years ago? Remember that time when you peacocks thought that _we—us,_ your _allies_… stole your precious aquamarine stone? Remember _that_?"

She did in fact remember. But she was so young. I was something she didn't really care for. She was actually the first in her family who thought to forget about it and to go along with their lives. But what did that have to do with this? _She did all of this because we accused them once of taking our stone? We forgot about it after._ There was no evidence at all. They just wanted to make sure who took it, and besides, they trusted their allies.

"Of course you remember," She spit out. "Look at you. So in denial… _just like your father._"

"Don't ever talk about my father!" Fan yelled. "My father never did anything to you!"

All Si Lai did was laugh. "Never did anything?" she started cracking up again, which made Fan fear her more, also making her think that after all these years, the fox was becoming psychotic. "There's the freakin' denial again, Fan. You can _stop _now!"

"Stop what?" Fan backed away, but Si Lai got closer.

"That you—_your family_… you all were still onto us about that stone!"

"No we weren't! We told your father on the spot that we were sorry for suspecting him for the crime! We forgot all about it afterwards, Si Lai!"

"Forgot about it?_ Ha!_ Suuuuure…" she smirked as she took out a feather from her pocket. Fan's eyes widened at the sight._ Daddy…_

"Looks familiar, doesn't it?"

"H-how…?" Fan was speechless. Never in her life has she given her one of her father's feathers at all. She was told that it was disrespectful to pluck a peacock's tail feather unless it simply fell off.

"This… this is proof that your father killed mine. You do remember Cai Ren, do you?"

She did see him a few weeks ago, did she not?

"I'm not stupid. Of course I do."

"He brought this to me. It was found at the scene of the crime. Right next to my father's body." She said with sadness. She remembered the scene and having intense shock of seeing the feather next to him. "And I know you peacocks have no secrets hidden from each other."

"My father never did _such a thing!_"

In a flash, the vixen ran right into Fan's face, retracted her claws in her paws, clenched her teeth and snarled. With her sharp teeth baring at her, Fan decided that this moment's been most fearful of seeing Si Lai again._ I am dead…_

"If you deny again, you'll join your parents…" she hissed menacingly. Her bright yellow eyes looked almost snakelike as her irises shrunk.

Fan was confident and sure that her father never did any murder and all this has a huge misunderstanding. She must honor her parents, not say what didn't happen. She's not denying, she's telling the truth.

"_I'm not denying…_" Fan said, not afraid of Si Lai now, but most afraid of her death to come. "And let me tell you something. If your father's looking down at you right now…_ I think he's disappointed in you._"

That did it. Si Lai attempted to pounce on the peahen with an aggressive bark, but Fan evaded her sharp canine teeth as she slipped out the window. Being a peahen, it was easy for her to maneuver around high trees and canopies; she just never got around to doing so. She made sure that her claws sank into the bark to hold her grip. She could fly round, but with the darkness, it's easy for her to get caught onto a branch. Plus, there were vines onto the trees to worry about.

She began to transport herself from random tree branch to another and so on, hoping that Si Lai wouldn't find her.

"_WHERE DID YOU GO?"_ Si Lai yelled as she jumped out the window and onto a nearby branch. She was never a great climber, but with her long claws, it could probably make her more able to find her. _I can't let that happen. I still got my baby Mi Lao. I don't want her to live the same life I'm living now._

"Si Lai, I'm not fighting you!" Fan cried out.

The vixen's ear turned to the sound of the peahen's voice and growled. _I know where she is._ She lifted a match from her shoulder strap and lit it with the bark. As the flame ignited from the tiny match, she stared at the yellow amber of heat, chuckled to herself and threw it at the leaves, vines and tree branches beyond her.

From where she hid, Fan noticed a bit of brightness of yellow. She peeked from the side of the branch and saw what Si Lai had done. _She set the tree on fire._ The fire almost looked like a phoenix eating up all the life of the tree. Another home of Fan's engulfed in flames… just like her family home. _It's like it's happening all over again. But I'm on my own…_

Her thoughts were interrupted when she felt warmer all of a sudden. She jumped in surprise after she realized that the flame was eating up the tree she was hiding behind. She tried not to get into the fire's path, which proved impossible everywhere she turned. She went one way and saw that it's being eaten up. She turns another way and the same thing. She's trapped. She stopped to see Si Lai keeping a furious face, looking even fiercer with the fire dancing in front of her. _Oh, shoot._

She flew down the canopies of the tree, for there was no other choice other than burning to death. But as she flew down, a fiery branch came down on her, injuring her wing. The pain made her cry out as she fell. Luckily, the fire didn't devour the tree below yet, though, only to have her fall into vines tangling her up in their grasp. She saw Si Lai coming down in time. Fan had to hurry.

She started nibbling on the vines with her sharp beak to free herself, careful not to accidently cut a vine that might choke her. _Snip. Snip. Snip. Snip._ She's coming closer, crouched down and growling. _Snip. Snip. Snip._ There was one last vine to go, until Si Lai finally pounced to finally take the last life of the peacock family. Fan couldn't take any chances. She used her possibly last seconds to cut the last vine tangled around her wing, anxiously biting into it with a force she thought she never had before. _Snnnnnnn-ip!_ She shot up flying before Si Lai could have her paws on her. She tangled herself in the vines while looking up at the surviving hen with pure hatred.

With her free hand, the fox retrieved her sword and carefully cut up all the vines holding her until she freed herself and clawed her way up the tree. Fan only looked down in fear, not looking forward to the worst. There was no other way to go without getting severely burned. _I guess this is it… I'm already dead. There's no doubt about it. Goodbye Mi Lao. Please, __**please **__know that I love you so much. Ke Li Si and Lu Ke, you two are such great friends. I couldn't have done it without you guys. Qiu Qiu, you were faithful to my parents and me. Keep safe… goodbye world and—_

"AAAHHH!"Fan cried as she felt the sharp claws of the violent fox go into her skin. She couldn't fight her back. She just couldn't. She was severely mistaken from all this. Even if she did fight her, she doesn't have a chance with her intelligence in combat. They fell below about thirty feet, their fall interrupted by a branch that happened to be in their way. Fan tried to fight her off to at least leave her grasp, but nothing proved possible. Each second to her was a second closer to death.

Shen continued his flight several miles ahead, feeling satisfied for once while feeling the fresh, clean breeze of the calm night. But it all stopped when he started to smell something a bit ashy. He smelled more and thought it seemed deathly. He tried to follow the smell as he glided over the lush canopies of a dense forest. It was until he came closer that he started to see smoke come up. His eyes wandered down in the smoky path and spotted a small patch of light where the path ended. He glided closer to investigate.

The closer he came to the spot, the clearer the image. A tree was on fire. _Well, that's what happens when parents let their kids play with fire in a forest. Idiots…_

But then he started to hear screaming. No, there were two different screams. They were both feminine. _What is this? A catfight? _But from the sound of it, it seemed violent. Being the eavesdropping guy he is, he flew in, curious as to what was going on. He carefully flew through the shrubby branches, cautiously whipping his train through the fiery depths of the smoky tree. As he moved in closer, he was surprised at the sight.

He saw a female fox down below wrestling with something else. From the heat of the fire and brightness piercing his eyes, it was hard to see while squinting. He tried closer, but no luck.

He climbed down more branches.

Fan cried out even more as more pain flashed into her injured wing whenever it hit hard surfaces. With Si Lai's weight on her, pain was everywhere. She feared the most excruciating and painful death possible coming closer.

Then a stump on a large branch stopped the rolling, catapulting Fan forward. As she looked up, she realized they were rolling right back where they started; almost close to the tree house, which was already in flames.

"Get up." Si Lai commanded. "Get up!"

Fan couldn't do anything. She was so weak, she couldn't move at all without having a part of her explode in pain.

"I said _get up!"_

Fan still lay where she was, staring at the tree house, the entire tree she called her second home, now destroyed. With her death coming, this possibly couldn't get any worse.

"Get up! Coward!" the fox yelled.

There was nothing the small peahen could do but just sit motionless.

Si Lai gave up and grabbed Fan by the neck, making her cough and gasp violently for air that she knows she won't have again.

"I'm giving you _one… last… chance._" Si Lai whispered. "Your father killed mine."

She waited for a response, but nothing came out but wheezes and gasps begging for air. Her face began to fade into a pale blue color and her eyes were narrowing. Fan could get herself out of this and just satisfy her with what she wants to hear. But she's not one for getting the easy way out. She must respect her parents' spirit through and through.

"N…. n-n… _No._" Fan admitted. "_I'm not saying what didn't happen._"

Si Lai's eyes grew angry and almost in a flash, a huge amount of pain was coursing through her after she gave a powerful punch to her stomach. She zipped through the tree house, breaking the wood into millions of pieces. She landed and stopped on the wall at the end of the house. She's completely worn out and for the first time in her life, she gave up. Not one part of her body moved.

Shen saw the whole scene. He thought about it repeatedly in his mind about butting into the fight, but each time, he held himself back. It wasn't any of his business._ Save her, Shen. Isn't that the reason why you're here? To change yourself? You haven't been making any results the past weeks, start right now._

He watched the fox walk towards the tree house where the peahen landed in. He didn't know why, but somewhere in his chest, he felt sick and odd. He had to make something happen. When the vixen jumped inside the house, Shen grew furious. He's decided what he's going to do. He reached for his lance beneath his sleeves.

Si Lai saw the peahen still alive on the floor of the room and was determined to end her once and for all.

"This looks familiar, Fan." She said with a grin. "Something about a decade ago."

Fan was listening, but she couldn't see. The ashes were making her eyes hurt. She wouldn't want to see her death, anyway.

"Hmm," Si Lai feigned. "Oh, yes. Like your father."

If Fan still had her energy, she would attack her for that, but like she reminded herself before, it wouldn't be worth it at all.

"_Fan, don't give up."_ A voice said. At first, Fan thought her mind was playing tricks on her, but she listened. _"Fan, stand your ground. Don't ever give up."_

"Mom?"

"_Yes, Fan."_

"_And me, too."_

"Dad."

"_Listen Fan, you're doing the right thing. Believe to say that you're right. You're right for not fighting back. Keep peace with them. All this is a mistake."_

"But how do I—"

"_She must understand soon."_

"But she won't listen."

"_Let time do its job."_

"But I'm going to die anyway. Like you."

"_That won't happen, honey."_

Her parents' voices faded away and she began to feel dizzy and lightheaded from the smoke. Her eyes began to feel heavy as well. She stopped breathing. The world seemed darker as her eyes were closing, closing, closing. The very last thing she saw was a cloud of pure white.

Shen broke into the fight just then and aggressively pointed his lance at Si Lai's nose. She was stuttered by the speed of the peacock coming in on a split-second. He stood in front of Fan's uncautious body, flashed his tail feathers upward and let out his shrill animal call.

"_Get away from here!_" he yelled. "_Go! Or I'll replace her life with __**yours!"**_

As soon as Si Lai brought out her sword, Shen took it off her paws with a precise kung fu move in a heartbeat. He flashed his angry ruby eyes at the vixen, making her turn, grab her sword and out the window. She was out of sight.

When Shen thought the worst was over, he heard a crack below the house. He swooped over to the window to look below and gasped. The tree was growing weak as the bark turned into ashes. He turned his neck back to the uncautious body on the floor. He must get her out. He hurried to her body and carefully put his head through the peahen's under wing and out. He lifted himself to feel the peahen on his back, feeling satisfied of how she looked when it came to comfort. He tried walking a few steps, but it was a hassle doing so with the girl's head dangling. He gently lifted her head a little not to get in the way.

He thought it was just right. Then the house started to shake. Suddenly the room became lop-sided. Shen figured now's the time to leave. He lifted his wings and flew out the window right into the sky.

He looked back, seeing the bright orange tree plummeting down going smaller and smaller. Then a small clicking sound bothered him. He looked around to find what the sound was before realizing that he had something on his foot. When he looked down, he saw a blue and green bracelet stuck on his metal talons.


	5. Chapter 4

Si Lai was enraged that the peahen got away. How could she let her leave? She was so close to finishing her off and she lost that chance. All because of that white peacock that came to her defense. She never even knew the bird and why it came. In the past years when she knew Fan, she never heard of that peacock being acquainted to her or other. All she knew was that the peacock was from Gongmen City, for she heard about his exile and his death not too long ago. But to see that he was alive was truly a surprise for her. Still, why he saved Fan was a huge puzzle for her.

She retreated back to the City of Warriors and entered her palace, eager to lock herself in her room and not let anyone interrupt her. She's too embarrassed to tell Cai Ren anything. If he'd ask, she would have to tell him that she got away with an albino peacock, which would make her brother laugh at her face. He was never the approachable kind of brother whom you tell secrets to and he doesn't think that it's funny, but with Cai Ren, that's the opposite. When Si Lai was mourning over her father's death, Cai Ren never came near; he would always go out hunting. When she had secrets, she wouldn't be open to him. _Fan would, though…_

She moaned at the thought of Fan and when she entered her room, she closed it shut with a slam. She grabbed a key from her dresser and locked the door. As soon as that was done, she fell onto her bed, angry with herself, angry with Fan, angry with her rescuer, angry with everything. Tears came running down her snout. _I shouldn't cry… I shouldn't cry…_ But she did, and she sobbed, covering her face in her hands. She tried to make any noise that would indicate that she was crying, but the least that would come out were small whimpers she assumes no one will hear outside.

Then she heard a bang on her door.

"Hey, Si Lai, whatever happened to your personal meeting with Fan?" her brother asked. He always thought that he was the head honcho of the clan and acts like it often to the point that he believes he is.

Si Lai sniffled a bit to compose herself, but after a few seconds, she climbed herself off her bed and wiped away any tear stains left behind.

"It's… it's none of your business…" she said, noticing her voice trembling.

"What? You failed or something?" he asked, which Si Lai could sense he said it with a grin.

"Just leave me alone, Cai Ren." She said coldly.

"C'mon, tell me. Did you fail or not?"

If he were a good brother, he would ask if she succeeded or not, not the other way around. This made her more upset.

"Yes, I _failed!_ What more do you want?" she snapped through the shut door.

"You failed? Man, Si Lai, you could've sent me." Cai Ren laughed.

"This is my personal thing, Cai Ren! I do it! Now won't you get out of my face!" she said, already feeling tears come out again.

"Okay. I just wanted to know…" and he was gone.

She sat back down on her bed. _I will show him… I'll finish her off soon and say I told you so…_

Lu Ke, Ke Li Si and Mi Lao traveled ahead, with every step they took, they worried more about Fan. But Mi Lao worried more. _Is she lost? Did she just give up? Was she taken by predators?_ The two snakes were careful not to mention Fan on the journey to not make Mi Lao worry any more than she is now. But as they did, the group was creepily quiet and awkward.

Soon, they came up to a spot to sleep for the night. They were only about two miles close to the Valley of Peace, but they thought they all deserved a good sleep, especially Mi Lai, whom Lu Ke had to carry on his back half the way. They set up a warm fire in the middle of their small camp. The snakes sat close to the warm fire, enjoying the warmth. Mi Lao was just sitting on a log, looking down.

Ke Li Si noticed this and frowned. What could she be thinking? That her mother left her at the chance she got? That would be impossible. He knows how much she loves her daughter and if that thought gets into the kitten's head, she's in trouble.

He slithered over to where she sat and asked, "Hey, Mi Lao. You okay?"

It a moment before she could finally shook her head slowly.

"Can you tell me what's wrong?"

Mi Lao's huge green eyes looked at Ke Li Si's hazel eyes and she knew that she has to tell what's on her mind. She always thought of both Ke Li Si and Lu Ke as her close uncles and appreciated them taking care of her when her mother was busy. She trusted them.

"I'm afraid for my mom." She said softly.

"Ah." Ke Li Si said, thinking about what to say next. "Well, maybe she'll come back soon, I mean, she can find her way over here."

"I'm also afraid if she…" she stopped. "Never mind."

"What?"

"No, it's stupid."

"Mi Lao, please."

She sighed and said, "I'm also afraid if she… if she just left me."

Ke Li Si was struck by those words. How can Fan just leave her daughter? He talks about her every day for crying out loud. She loves Mi Lao more than anything. Isn't she doing this mainly for her?

"Now, you listen to me, Mi Lao, I know Fan and she would _never ever _leave you."

Mi Lao was feeling her eyes feeling moist.

"Don't ever think that your mother left you for anything. Something must've happened, maybe, but don't worry. She's pretty strong at heart and I bet you, that if her life depended on it, she would do _anything _for you. I know that she'll catch up with us."

Mi Lao did nothing but hug the python. He hugged her back. "You really think that she'll come back?"

"I know it."

"I know it, too." Lu Ke pitched in.

"What, you have a vision that she's with us?"

"No, I would if I wanted to, but it's involuntary. But yes, Mi Lao, I know so, too." He winked at Mi Lao.

"Now let's get some sleep. You want a hammock?" Ke Li Si asked the kitten. She wiped her eyes and nodded.

As the trio got ready for sleep, Ke Li Si curled around a tree branch and left a part of his body down to look like a hammock. Mi Lao climbed on and curled up into a ball like she always did on her mother when she was a newborn.

"Goodnight, guys." Lu Ke said.

"Night, Lu Ke. Night, Mi Lao." Ke Li Si said.

"Night…"

_Oh, man… that was a horrible dream… I thought Si Lai was about to kill me, but… oh, it was just a dream. Goodness gracious. And then there was that white peacock that saved me. Boy, that was one weird dream. Good thing it's over… OUCH!_

"Aaaaahhh!" Fan yelled out as she tried to stretch her wing. The pain was excruciating that she let out a small spasm. She awakened immediately. As she took a look at her wing and on her shoulder, she saw acupuncture needles on her. She dug under her feathers with her beak to take a look at her wing and identified it. It was a horrible purple bruise. "Aw, shoot."

Then she began to look around. She didn't notice that she was lying on her back in a bed of grass. She wanted to get up, but was afraid to accidently bump the needles or from harming her wing more. She was in a forest, though she doesn't know any specific details, but she was under a small tree, covered from the morning sun. Her stomach growled.

"Aw, man," she whispered to herself. She had to get out of this, but she doesn't know how.

She wanted to attempt something risky: jump on her feet. _I must be really stupid right now…_ She tried to prepare herself by arching herself to and fro repeatedly to gain some strength. When she thought she was ready, she made one last hard thrust forward, but she landed on her side. Fortunately, it wasn't the side where she was injured. "Oh, jeez. How can I—"

She tried to make herself get up with her legs, but that proved nothing. She tried to get up with her beak. _Fail._

"Fine, I'll stay a blob on the floor, then." She mumbled with a depressed look on her face.

"You sure you want that?"

Fan startled at the sound of the voice. It was sort of gruff and somewhat European. She looked around as she lifted her long neck. She saw nothing. But then she heard a fan-noise and a thud, along with the sound of a clank from some kind of metal. She looked behind her and she saw the white peacock. He had on a silver silk robe that was almost translucent and perfectly matched the peacock's plumage. His feathers were pure snowy white. The only differences were his red eyespot patterns on his train and his crown of feathers. His eyes were also blood-red. _So… what happened was not a dream. He's real._

"I… was being sarcastic." She replied. "I really want to get up."

"Are you sure you want to get up with those in your wing?" he pointed at the needles.

She glanced at them. "Why? Should I?"

"If you want the pain still there."

Fan rolled her eyes.

"Fine, roll your eyes like that. You don't want my help, then good day." The peacock said as he turned to leave.

Leave? Leave her here?

"No, wait!" she pleaded. The peacock stopped and turned his head, but not looking at her. "I'm sorry. It's just… I'm having a hard morning already…"

He looked at her directly. "Don't we all?"

"I… guess?" Fan squinted.

Shen chuckled. "Look, I know that I'm a huge stranger to you, but that doesn't mean that I deserve your crap."

Fan blushed. He was right for one thing. For what he did for her, he deserved some credit, not this… crud.

"Okay, okay. I'm officially sorry now. Just…"

"What?"

"Just…" she blushed more from embarrassment. "Just help me, please?"

Shen let out a long sigh and walked towards Fan. When she expected the stranger to just take out the needles where she laid, she squealed as he moved in to carry her on his back.

"What are you—?"

"You need a comfortable place to lay in, honey." He said. "What? You think that plucking out needles is easy?"

"No, but I—"

"Then let me do what I need to do." He demanded.

"Fine." Fan frowned.

He led her to the grass bed again and intended to carefully set her down, but she accidently slipped off and on the ground.

"_Oh, sh—"_

"Apologies."

She looked up at him, her bangs covering her right eye. Shen never saw the color of her eyes until now, since she is awake, and they were a dark brown color. Now they were darting at him.

Lazy and tired to carry her any more, he simply rolled her over to the grass bed.

"Now take them out, please?" Fan asked eagerly.

"Take what out?"

_Is he playing stupid?_

"The needles?"

"Who said I was taking them out?"

_What the—?_

"If I take them out, then you will still have the pain from the bruise. Would you want that?"

Fan just stared up at him.

"Of course you don't. Unless you've got problems."

"I don't have any problems," Fan responded, then thought. "Well… it's nothing. So what are you going to do if you're not taking the needles out? You're the expert."

"Hmm…" Shen thought as he looked at the wing. "Well, it is obvious that you still have pain. I still have to find your nerve to make the pain go away."

"So… more needles?" Fan asked faintly, her eyes growing wide.

"That is correct."

_Oh, no._ Fan has grown up being afraid of needles all her life. Thinking about one makes her shiver.

"Well, why didn't you do it while I was still uncautious?"

"I took a break. I mean, I've got to eat."

"Okay, okay, just do it quick." Fan pleaded, closing her eyes for the pain.

"Sure. Just wait a moment. This might pinch a little."

He stabbed her wing._ Pinch a little?_

"Ow!" she cried. "I do not call that a little pinch!"

"Well, what am I supposed to tell you? It might feel like a knife stabbing you?"

He stabbed her again.

"Yoooooooowww!"

"Try to quiet down, will you?"

"I'm trying!"

He gave her another stab. After this, Fan never wants to hurt herself again. She would rather lock herself in a room and sit in a corner where it's safe.

Eleven needle stabs later, Shen was frustrated at his work.

"Where is that nerve?" he whispered to himself.

"This _really_ hurts."

"I know it does."

"Oh, really?"

"I'm serious. When I was small, I was playing with my parents' woks and I accidently dropped it on my foot."

"Ouch."

"Indeed." He said. He gave another stab. "They told me to go to my nanny, who's also a Soothsayer and she cured me with acupuncture and also wrapped my foot."

"Really?"

"True story." He added. He stabbed her again.

Trying to cover her pain, she strained to say, "So that's why you have those metal feet?"

He looked down at them. "No, back then, it healed. This was from… something else."

"Okay."

He stabbed her again. "My nanny also taught me this. I don't remember much, but I know how to do this."

Finally, he stabbed her again and she let out a loud long cry.

"_Aaaahh!"_ she yelled, but then she stopped awkwardly. "Huh?"

She extended her wing. No pain. She moved it around. Zip.

"It doesn't hurt."

"Now, you see?" Shen said as he started plucking out the needles off her.

"Wow, thanks." Fan said, smiling at her wing.

Shen was removing the last needle before he said. "No, it's nothing."

"Well, okay then." She was about to turn to leave until she stopped. "I—I'm sorry. That was improper of me. What's your name?"

Shen looked up at her after she said that. _She wants to know my name?_ He took a moment to look at her. Her huge eyes were big and sweet. Her head was a light blue that was translucent and her bangs royal blue. Her crown of feathers were light green with flower patterns at the ends of each one. Her vest was light purple and simple, with her wings a light chocolate color. He had to admit that she was pretty, but he's seen better. For some reason, he sort of recognized her, but thought it was impossible.

He figured that she may keep a promise.

"Okay, but you must swear not to tell anyone at all."

Fan made an odd expression. _No tell anyone?_ She chuckled. "Okay?"

"My name is Shen. Lord Shen."

"Oh, well, nice to meet you, Lord Shen." She said sending a small smile.

Shen was confused. How can she not recognize his name?

"You don't know who I am?"

"Uh, no."

"Really?" he couldn't tell if she was joking.

"No, I don't… recognize your name." she shrugged.

"Oh," he said. How could anyone not know the name of he who committed the panda genocide, murdered Master thundering Rhino and attempted to take over China? Maybe the girl does have problems. "Okay."

"I'm Fan. Lady Fan Ni Sha." She said.

"You're royalty, too?"

"Yeah, but unfortunately, we're not really known?"

"You're from where?" Shen asked.

"The Forest of Prosperity. It doesn't really matter to many people. We're a… dump." She said embarrassingly.

"Oh, I see."

"Do you?"

Shen was about to say something, but he was interrupted by the sound of voices coming. Fan oddly recognized the voices.

"Faaaan! Fan!" he heard two familiar voices call out.

"Lu Ke? Ke Li Si?" she said softly.

"Moooooooom!" she heard. That voice was small and high-pitched.

"Mi Lao!" she said with glee. She turned back to Shen and eagerly grabbed his arm, shaking it. "Shen, thank you so much for helping me. Really, I appreciate it, but I have to go."

"Wait, Fan." He urged. "Remember, don't tell anyone about me."

"Why not?"

"It's… personal. Just please. Don't tell anyone about me, understand?"

She didn't, but she nodded anyway. "Bye, Shen."

And she ran off toward the voices. He climbed up a tree and looked at her to make sure she made it to them safely until she was out of sight.


	6. Chapter 5

Fan was running with all her energy to reunite with her friends and daughter, so very thankful to have the chance to see them all again. She couldn't possibly know how much they all missed her. Ignoring the minor injuries on her thin legs, she kept running with all her might.

"Guys! Lu Ke! Mi Lao!" she yelled out with all her breath, desperate to let her family know that she's alive and safe. "Ke Li Si! Over here!"

Up ahead, the two snakes and kitten listened to the silence, hearing a familiar voice break it through. Hope filled all their hearts that raced as they heard the voice go louder and closer.

"You guys! I'm here!" it called out again.

Lu Ke couldn't believe what he's hearing. "Is it her…?"

They listened more. They were sure of it.

"It has to be," Mi Lao whispered hopefully. "It's her."

Out of the light fog of the forest sprang out the peahen they knew. She was alive and well. Without any hesitation, the three came forward to her, excited to see their dear friend. Mi Lao almost felt happy tears coming to her eyes. She ran as fast as her stubby little feet could take her.

When the space between them all, closed, there was a huge reunion. Fan was hugging her little child tightly beneath her wings as Mi Lao was tearing up on her mother's vest. Lu Ke and Ke Li Si wrapped themselves around Fan and Mi Lao, coiling them all into a group hug.

"You guys! That's enough!" Fan smiled, her breath was taken out from her.

"I can't breathe! I'm gonna suffocate!" Mi Lao exclaimed as she flailed her squeezed arms in the air.

They all laughed after the two snakes released their grip, a happy moment they were glad to have.

"Wow, we thought that you got lost or something!" Lu Ke said.

"Worse, we thought something bad happened to you!" Ke Li Si added.

That's not all what happened, but Fan remembered her promise to the stranger she's met a moment ago.

"Yeah, well," she murmured. "I was just a little lost for a while, that's all."

Then horror came to Mi Lao's eyes as she spotted the bruise on Fan's wing. Fan noticed that it was still there, but only the pain was gone, not the wound itself.

"What's that?" her daughter yelled.

"Oh, umm…" the peahen stammered. The two snakes noticed the wound as well.

"Wow, that's a nasty bruise."

"Got that right, Lu Ke. How'd that happen, Fan?"

Fan was feeling conflicted. What should she come up with now? They already bought the "fact" that she "got lost". What else should she add? She was debating what to say nest.

"Uhh, I fell in the dark, yeah." She said, nodding.

Then she felt her stomach twist into knots as she looked into both her friends' eyes, squinting suspiciously at her.

"You fell…?" Lu Ke asked.

"… In the dark?" Ke Li Si finished.

"Yeah, I mean, it gets really dark in the forest without a lantern." She said before feeling stupid for adding the silly comment.

"Ah." Ke Li Si said, looking at Lu Ke if he agrees to his "statement".

"Mom? What's this?" Mi Lao meowed as she picked off something from Fan's shoulder.

"What's what, sweetie?"

"This?" she pulled out a tiny strand of feather, or at least a part of it. It was pure white. _Shen._

"Oh, I guess it—" she was stammering for words. "I think it just fell on me or—"

Lu Ke took the piece of feather in fascination, examined it and his eyes grew wide. "This is a peacock feather, Fan."

Fan felt a lump in her throat. Her feet began to feel weak. _I didn't mean to break the promise…_ But she improvised.

"I told you guys, it probably fell on me by accident. A lot of birds molt these days."

There was a small moment of silence before Ke Li Si spoke, "I think she's right."

"You think so?" Lu Ke eyed the python.

"Yeah, I mean, you can't keep feathers off you when they're coming your way. They're sometimes a bit pesky."

It took three seconds before Lu Ke nodded in agreement.

"Okay, I guess I was a little too suspicious." He looked at Fan. "I just wanted the honest truth."

Fan gulped, afraid that they would hear.

"Well, we're almost to the Jade Palace. You're just in time for us to finally be there." Lu Ke said, finally smiling again.

"How much ground do we need left to cover?" Fan asked.

"About less than a mile. Maybe a third." Ke Li Si answered.

"That long?" Mi Lao whined. Fan chuckled at her daughter's anxiety.

"We'll get there, Mi Lao."

"Okay, mom…"

They all started walking to the Valley of Peace and they were in awe at how organized and—obviously—peaceful it was. The streets were glowing almost a gold-ish color and the citizens were very kind to each other. All she saw were rabbits and their bunny children, pigs and piglets, which struck her as adorable, and geese. It was all different to her than those that live in the Forest of Prosperity, which were the occasional hummingbirds, raccoons, skunks and deer. The only comparisons were the rabbits and pigs. There were very few geese in her city. But she became a little envious every time she saw someone helping another. Back at home, no one would do so but her. If she wouldn't she would be accused of not caring for her people, which she obviously does.

They all stop in front of a little shop that was cute and very lively, full of hungry customers. In front of every one of them was a bowl of noodles.

"Oh! Oh! I know what this is!" Mi Lao shouted.

"Mi Lao, try to keep your voice down low." Fan told her. "What is this?"

"It's the Noodle Shop that the Dragon Warrior was raised in! It's umm…" she took a moment to think. "Oh! Mr. Ping's Dragon Warrior Noodles!"

"So you're saying that this Mr. Ping is Po's dad?"

"Uh huh! I heard that he does very good noodles!"

Then an old goose came out from the kitchen door and began asking the customers for any requests.

"Soy sauce? Whatever you need, just ask! Welcome to Dragon Warrior Noodles and Tofu!" the goose squawked. Fan almost giggled seeing the plush noodle hat that the goose was wearing. "Welcome, welcome! There's a table over there! Oh, you want one close to the mop? You gotta pay extra!"

"I have to say, the goose is good with business." Ke Li Si mumbled to Lu Ke. He nodded in agreement.

When the goose turned his head to see the group standing in front of his shop, he walked over to them.

"Hello! Welcome! What can I get you today?" he said with a charming grin.

"Oh, we're just looking." Fan reasoned. "We were on our way to—"

"Are you tourists?" Mr. Ping blurted out. Fan stiffened from the random question until Mi Lao came in front of her.

"We're not paying extra, Mr. Ping." She pouted.

"Mi Lao!" Fan gasped.

"Oh, no, it's no trouble. You know children," Mr. Ping reached down to pet the kitten's head. "Being all fun and games in their young ages."

"Yeah, of course." The peahen replied as she was stroking Mi Lao's fur straight again.

"Is she yours?"

"Why, yes. I found her in an abandoned temple six years ago, left in a bag." Fan said, grateful again with the memory of taking her in.

"Interesting! I found my Po in a radish basket!" Mr. Ping said proudly. "He was the cutest little panda! I wish he were that baby panda again…"

"Aww, well, he must love you." Fan said sweetly to the nostalgic goose.

"Yes, he does. I'm so proud to have him accept me as his real father." He smiled.

At that instant, she wished that she could have that kind of relationship with her Mi Lao. Sure, there are some moments between them, but they weren't that open to each other about how they felt. Fan could sense that Mr. Ping had that with his son and he was happy for him, but she hoped for the same with her and her daughter.

"So, what are you here for, then?" Mr. Ping asked.

"We're here to take kung fu classes. It's kind of a long story." Lu Ke said.

"Oh, it's okay! I'm so busy here, I don't think I'd listen." The goose replied chuckling. Then the sound of retching shattered the moment.

Mr. Ping turned around to see what happened and saw that a bunny puked.

"Here, use this mop to clean it!" the bunny's father exclaimed.

"_No, no! Don't get it dirty!"_ Mr. Ping yelled out running to the scene.

The group thought it was time to continue moving. Fan thought that Mr. Ping was an interesting character. She made a note to eat there sometime.

"That was funny." Mi Lao giggled.

"It sure was." Fan chuckled.

The group walked on and had their mouths gaped wide open when they saw the stair steps. They all thought it would be at least half a mile long.

"How do we…?" Mi Lao gasped.

"Fan, you can fly us up." Ke Li Si suggested.

But Fan didn't like the idea. "And carry you two and Mi Lao up there? You know how much all of you weigh altogether?"

"C'mon, mom!" Mi Lao wailed.

Fan thought it through quick and figured to do so to please everyone. "Okay."

She flapped her wings, caught one snake in each foot and as she did so, Mi Lao climbed on her back. She instantly gasped from the weight. But she managed to stay in the air and flew up to the top. By the time she reached the top, she was huffing and gasping. She passed out yesterday from fire smoke and now she has to go through resting from that hard flight.

"We're here." Lu Ke said with a smile.

Mi Lao's tail was swaying to and fro with excitement. "We're so close!"

Fan took a look at her surroundings and absorbed it all. The structures of the buildings were strong and lovely. Peaceful, even. There were steps on two opposite sides and a platform in-between. With the emptiness of where she stood, she assumed that this was the arena. She looked up and saw the Jade Palace, just a few steps away. It shown bright in bright yellow-green roofs, beautiful blue-green colors mixed with some reds. She was amazed.

She guessed that her friends would be able to walk on foot up to the Jade Palace; she already wore herself out the way up here. She glanced at Mi Lao and was fascination written all over her face. She jumped numerous times every time she mentioned a fact about the Jade Palace.

When they walked up the steps to the actual palace, Fan was surprised to see a small panda sitting, waiting for them to come. He was a bit elderly, but looked strong enough to be the master of kung fu. He had white fur with few light tan features patching his eyes and stripes on his tail. His eyes were a bright blue and kind-looking for a serious and masterly red panda. As soon as Mi Lao saw him, she gasped.

"It's Shifu! He was trained personally by Master Oogway!" she exclaimed, tugging on her mother's wing continuously.

"I see him, Mi Lao!" Fan chuckled. She loved how charming her daughter was, especially when she's excited.

Shifu smiled at the group and bowed at them. "Welcome to the Jade Palace. I assure you that your stay here will give you a lot of experience in the art of kung fu and the knowledge to use it wisely."

"Thank you, Shifu." Fan said, bowing back. "We, mainly I, feel grateful of you and your students helping us out. We really need all the help we can get."

"Well, you are very welcome, Miss Lady Fan Ni Sha. It is also an honor to have someone in royalty to be with us." The red panda smiled.

"Oh, well, I don't think that's really important." Fan shrugged. "But it's no trouble."

Shifu nodded. Then he looked around as if expecting someone else. "So, where's your daughter?"

Fan giggled as she presented Mi Lao. "Here she is."

Shifu looked at the black kitten in surprise. He honestly expected to see another peahen, but smaller. But seeing a black kitten was nothing he expected to see. He shouldn't be surprised, for he himself had adopted Tai Lung, a clouded leopard, but he reacted as such since "the daughter" was described as nothing more than just her daughter. _This is a little awkward._

"She's yours?" Shifu asked, pointing to the excited ball of fluff.

"Yes, of course. Found her myself. She's six years old."

"Well, that changes things…" he said. He planned to have the mother and daughter trained by Master Crane, but seeing Mi Lao as a cat, she would be better suited with Master Tigress. "But it's nothing critical. I just expected your daughter to… look like you."

"I get that a lot." Fan sighed.

"I'm sure you do. Now, follow me." He said before he summoned two geese to open the Jade Palace doors for him. As the doors opened, the outside world somehow became an illusion to the peaceful beauty inside the palace. It was the Sacred Hall of Warriors.

To Fan, it almost looked like a museum display of ancient items related to kung fu, but she was even more amazed by the structure of the pillars, the ceilings and the Moon Pool at the end of the hall. It was not bright inside, but not entirely dark, either. It was illuminated beautifully with the morning light, making the Moon Pool glisten in clear sparkles.

Mi Lao literally squealed in amazement. She ran everywhere to look at the armors, paintings, and weapons. She knew now to touch the items, but accidently cut herself with the Sword of Heroes.

"Is it okay for her to browse around?" Fan asked Shifu.

"Oh, yes, as long as she doesn't touch or break anything. The Dragon Warrior once broke the Urn of Whispering Warriors. My messenger Zeng had to glue and piece the urn together again." Shifu explained. "Now, wait a moment so can summon the Five over to greet you all."

After the red panda left, Fan faced Lu Ke and Le Li Si. They were looking around the structure, taking in the colors and the displays.

"Wow, guys, we're already here." Fan whispered to her friends. "I have to say, it looks _amazing _here!"

"I'll say. Most of this building may be made entirely out of jade stone." Lu Ke said.

"This is nice." Ke Li Si commented.

"And to think, we'll meet the masters very soon!" Fan continued. "And we—"

She was interrupted by Mi Lao tugging Fan's shirt. She bent down and asked, "What is it, honey?"

She got close to Fan's ear so the snakes wouldn't hear and whispered, "_I think someone in that urn talked to me just now…_"

Fan almost laughed, but held it in and replied, "It did?"

She nodded as if it were the most amazing thing she'd experienced.

"Well, so and see if you can have a conversation with it. I bet it's real nice." Fan said.

Mi Lao nodded slowly. "_Okay…_" she whispered, and slowly walked back to the urn.

Fan turned back to her friends and giggled. "I think she'll have a great time here, too."

"It looks like she already is after that encounter with the urn." Ke Li Si said as he watched Mi Lao talking to the urn. "She's already picking up a conversation."

Fan turned and saw her daughter laughing in the silence and let out another quiet giggle.

"Maybe this was a good idea," she said, then frowned. "But what if the city needs me?"

She remembered the encounter she had with Si Lai. If she somehow knew where she is, the city would be in trouble. With her knowing that she's alive, she'll stop at nothing to get her.

"Fan, try to forget about it now. Just this _one _time."Lu Ke said. "You're caring for the city for doing this. It's for them. It's for her."

Fan knew he meant Mi Lao. She shouldn't be worried about her city. Qiu Qiu was perfect to take her place for this short time, and she must make it all count.

"I'll try." Was all she said.

Then they overhear the sound of footsteps coming and they saw the Furious Five enter the hall. There was Tigress first, looking strong, serious and in a way, beautiful. Next was Viper, who was gentle-looking and sweet. Then came Monkey, a bit silly-looking, but also looks like he means kung fu business. Mantis came in next, surprising all with his miniscule size compared to everyone else in the room. Last came in Crane, with his skinny build, long legs and long neck. He wore a hat similar to Lu Ke's. He had kind yellow eyes that looked very promising. He struck Fan as pretty handsome, but not for her taste. Then she immediately remembered her rescuer. _Shen…_ She shook away the thought when Shifu began speaking.

"Miss Fan and guests, I would like you to meet the Furious Five." He began. "Tigress, Viper, Monkey, Mantis and Crane."

"It's a pleasure to meet you all." Fan blushed.

"It's an _honor_ meeting you, Miss Fan." Crane said.

Fan turned to see Lu Ke and Ke Li Si's reaction, only to see them both wide-eyed. She followed where their eyes were pointed and it was none other than Viper. She chuckled at their looks.

"We'll make sure you're all properly trained and ready to fight in combat." Tigress said calmly.

"We have great confidence in for all." Fan smiled.

"Where is the Dragon Warrior? Is he taking a nap again?" Shifu asked, looking around.

Tigress sighed. "I guess. Either that or he's in the kitchen."

Monkey gasped. "He better not steal my cookies!"

"I'll go get him…" Mantis said as he exits the room.

"Right," Shifu said. "Then let's start assigning the students to their masters. Fan Ni Sha, you will be trained by Master Crane."

Both Crane and Fan beamed at the news. She thought it would be easier to be trained by someone like a bird.

"Little Mi Lao will be trained by Mater Tigress."

The kitten shrieked with joy.

"And… Lu Ke and Ke Li Si will be trained by Master Viper."

The two snakes both blushed intensely. Viper felt awkward at the two, but told herself to just go with it.

Then the assigning was interrupted by the sound of a scream and some small punches, followed by a faint sound of a huge lump of something being dragged. Mantis emerged into the hall dragging a panda's foot. When the panda was in sight, his mouth was full and his snout was full of crumbs.

"And he eats my cookies again." Monkey said, placing his face into his hand.

"What? I can't help it!" the panda said with his mouth full. He swallowed and got up. "Thanks, Mantis."

"No problem. that was a good workout for the morning." Mantis replied.

"The Dragon Warrior!" Mi Lao gasped as she ran towards the panda. She pounced on him before her mother could stop her. "I can't believe I'm actually _meeting_ you!"

Po saw the kitten clinging on his stomach when Fan walked towards him. "You'll have to excuse my daughter. She's very excited and—"

"Oh, no, Miss. I don't mind. I'm willing to be with kids." Po said sweetly.

Fan had to admit that the Dragon Warrior was even more adorable that she had expected. Seeing him as a panda didn't make him intimidating at all, but she thought he was very cute. And to see that he wasn't the famous self-absorbed type really had her relieved to have her daughter interact with him. It was really a dream come true to Mi Lao.

"I am a big fan of you, Mister Dragon Warrior!" Mi Lao said.

The panda chuckled. "You can call me Po. What's your name?"

"Mi Lao." She said, tugging the hem of her shirt and blushing. "Po."

"And nice to meet you all, too." Po said, facing Fan and the two mesmerized snakes. "Trust me, these guys…. Whew. They can train you easy. But you have to have the dedication for it."

"I know I will!" Mi Lao said, jumping.

"I have faith in you, little kitty." He said, petting Mi Lao.

"You will start your training tomorrow." Shifu said. "Your masters will lead you to the barracks where you will spend the night for the next few weeks. If you have any questions, you may consult to me, either of the Furious Five, or Po. We hope you'll have a pleasant stay here in the Jade Palace"


	7. Chapter 6

Shen was walking back to his little den, thinking back the events from his last encounter with the peahen. _Lady Fan Ni Sha._ It was a charming name. He just wondered what a peahen from royalty was doing in a forest fire with a fox. He realized that he never asked about that, but it didn't even matter. He just met her. It wasn't as if he would see her again. There wasn't even a slight chance.

But there was an odd feeling inside him when she was nice to him. Of course, she wasn't much nice when they barely met, but they were strangers. He can't blame her for talking to him the way she did. If it were the other way around, he would've been nastier. Also, how could she not know who he is? He is the notorious Lord Shen. He killed Master Thundering Rhino and attempted to conquer China. How can she not know that? But also for some odd reason, he felt like he recognized her. It's probably his mind playing games with him.

He continued to walk on, ignoring his surroundings with his thoughts until he heard a familiar voice whisper a few feet away.

"_She-e-en…"_ the voice said.

He followed the voice, and as he came closer, he recognized the voice. _Of course… the panda._ He saw him whispering his name through a tree stump that was left empty.

"_She-e-en…"_ he heard him say again.

The peacock walked over to the panda and looked at him spying inside the stump._ What a stupid panda._ He thought.

"_She-e-en…"_ he said.

Shen bent down his head and leaned close to his ear so he could hear. "Do you see me in there?"

"No, you must be somewhere else, because," the panda lifted his face out of the stump and gasped. "Ooo-h-oh-oh…! Shen!"

"Yes, good morning to you, too." Shen scowled.

"W-where were you, Shen?" Po asked. "I was going to check on you, but you weren't in your den like I told you to."

"And what? I'm not free to roam around as I please? I'm not a caged bird." Shen retorted.

"You could've gotten caught, and—"

"Well, I didn't. Besides, do you know how it feels to stay in one place for days? It does things to you." Shen argued.

"You should've told me that you wanted to take a walk!"

"And then what? You would still say no."

"For a walk?"

"Ha!" Shen laughed proudly. "I don't need to walk. Before I was exiled, my servants walked _for _me. I only fly."

"But you're sure that no one saw you."

"Not a soul." Shen reassured.

But Po then looked at him suspiciously in the eye.

"I didn't kill anyone when I said that, panda." He added, his eyes squinting.

"Okay, good. I mean that no one saw you."

"Yes, I get to live another day. Hurrah." Shen said sarcastically.

"Okay," Po chuckled. It would take some time to make this peacock to stop those sarcastic remarks at him. "Well, our trainees came in today."

"Oh?" Shen ignored the panda as he started grooming his feathers, digging with his beak.

"Yeah, they all look like they can be very good."

"Good for them," he started getting rid of the twigs off his robe.

"Yeah, I can't believe that Lady Fan Ni Sha came to us. Can you believe it?" Po continued on.

Shen ceased his grooming when he mentioned that familiar name. Fan Ni Sha. How could she be one of the trainees that they had a ruckus about? Did she go train to fight off that fox better? He guessed that was the reason.

"Did you say Fan Ni Sha?" he asked.

"Yeah, what about it?" Po responded.

"Well," Shen said nervously. "See, when I went out last night… I saw her fighting a fox."

"Oh, so you saw her."

"That's not all. She was trying to fight it off, you see? But it was a nasty fight. The tree was on fire and I went in to see what the trouble was. Then, out of nowhere, that vixen knocked the peahen out cold."

Po was listening to every word.

"I don't know what it was or what made me do it, but… I intervened and took her out of the scene."

Po was surprised. He never expected a guy like Shen to go out rescuing people, but of course, Shen himself thought it was unexpected as well. He can't quite picture Shen saving someone. But Fan? Why didn't she say anything about it?

"So she wasn't with her friends?" he said.

Shen shook his head. "There was no one except that vix…" he stopped and cursed himself. "_She saw me! That lady-fox!"_

He'd forgotten not to blow his cover until he had an impulse to save the peahen and now it's got the best of him._ Shoot..!_

"What fox?"

"That's not the point. Fan didn't have anyone with her at the time. I cured her from a bruise using acupuncture, we had some small talk and she just left." He finished.

"So she just left and that's it?"

"No, there were voices. Voices calling her. That was what drove her to leave." He remembered.

"That was probably her friends. They came with her, too."

"Did she look safe?" Shen asked out of the air. He wasn't sure he really asked that.

"Yeah." Po said, nodding. "She looked like she didn't have any trouble before coming."

"Okay," Shen said. "Good."

"Why are you concerned then?"

That's what's troubling him. Why did she save her when he doesn't know her personally at all? Why was he aiding her that morning? He could've just left her with that fox and he wouldn't have this mental conflict. Or maybe he was just being dramatic. So far, he did one good thing without realizing it. At least he's making progress.

"I have no idea… I don't know." Shen began. "Maybe I felt… like, I don't know. I just had to save the girl."

"I see," Po said calmly.

"But now that she's with you guys, I don't know if she'll even remember me. Probably not."

"We'll see, Shen. I mean, you did something you may thing is not much, but you saved her life." Po smiled. "It might mean a lot to her."

Shen just looked at the ground and nodded.

Po then got up, Shen knowing that he's about to leave.

"Well, I'm gonna go get you some breakfast and you stay put. You gave me a fright." He commanded and walked away.

Shen watched him walk up the steps to the Jade Palace and whispered under his breath, "No promises."

Fan, Ke Li Si, Lu Ke and Mi Lao were led to the barracks by the Five, a nice and tidy wooden building that felt homey. The rooms were in a hall, one next to another with paper for walls, which really made Fan confident that there would be no trouble around here. The rooms were dimly illuminated by the sunlight behind the paper walls, giving a beautiful glow that reassures peace. In the center of every one of them was a mat, but in three rooms, there were beds especially for their guests.

Two rooms were for each of the snakes, and Viper gestured to them, sending her sweet smile to the two kindly.

"These will be your rooms." She said. "They're both the same, so you can choose."

The two snakes blushed as they passed her by and silently chose their rooms as Ke Li Si went to his first and Lu Ke in the other. Viper almost giggled.

Crane led Fan and Mi Lao to their room, which was in-between the snakes' individual rooms, which Fan thought was perfect for the both of them. There was a small hammock that was hung on a wooden bar in the ceiling, for both Fan and Mi Lao to sleep in. There were folded blankets in the hammock.

"You two will stay here." Crane said. "We noticed that your daughter was coming, so we figured that it would be best to room you two together."

Fan thought that it was sweet of the masters to have it thought out the past three weeks. It was almost as if they knew that she and Mi Lao needed some bonding time and she was grateful for their decision.

"Thank you very much, Master Crane. You don't know how much this means to me." Fan thanked.

"You're very welcome." Crane said as he tipped his hat. "And please, you can just call me Crane."

"Okay." Fan chuckled, and then bowed. "Thank you, _Crane._"

Crane saw a minor flaw in her bow. "Like this." And he gestured by lifting his wing upward and his other wing bent as if he made it into a fist. "That's how we do it."

"Okay." And she did the same, smiling.

"Good." Crane said warmly. "But it won't be that easy when we start training tomorrow. You need your rest. It's still morning and you've traveled a long way. You may roam around here to get used to everything."

Fan didn't plan to look around much, but she'd rather get settled in and start getting used to her time here.

"Thank you again, Crane."

"You're welcome, Fan." Then he started to walk off before he stopped and turned to face her again, saying, "If you have any questions or you need me, I'll be in the training center."

"Sure thing." She replied. He left then.

Mi Lao stepped into the room and absorbed it. She took out her bag and right away, Fan joined her, knowing that her daughter would want some help to put up her posters to make her feel at home. They started by taking out Mi Lao's little posters and used a glue to safely pin them up on the walls. Soon, when they were done, it almost looked exactly like Mi Lao's room, only tidier.

Mi Lao examined the final product and nodded like she herself was a critic.

"Yep. It looks just right." She said in her spunky voice. "Just one more thing."

She reached into her bag and took out an old drawing, breaking Fan's heart. It was a drawing of Mi Lao and Fan together under a cherry blossom tree. Fan remembered she presented the drawing to her when she was two years old when she was using her spare time to draw while she was babysitting her adopted daughter. She was just sitting next to her peahen mother filled with boredom and as she saw her mother drawing, she wanted to imitate her and took some paper from her mother's stash to start. She remembered looking down on her, in that little child-like pose she did lying down on her belly, concentrating hard to draw just like her. Fan stopped her work to look at her little two-year old and once she was finished, she showed her masterpiece to her, sending a smile that Fan fell in love with every time. They were little stick figures, Fan having a circle body and head, stick neck and legs and Mi Lao circles for her head and body and sticks for arms and legs. The cherry blossom tree was tube-shaped and bushy with pink scribbles. But Fan thought it was beautiful.

She saw Mi Lao placing the glue on the back of the page and pasted it on the wall.

"There, that's better." She said.

Fan almost cried, but she pulled back to not make an emotional mess of herself and hugged her kitten from behind gently. "It makes it look better, huh?"

"Uh huh." Mi Lao replied proudly. Then she turned and hugged her mother back. "Thank you for this, mom."

Fan hugged her tighter, hoping never to let go. "You're welcome, sweetheart."

It was a beautiful moment for her, but it was a start. She's got to see how she's going to make time for her since they would be separated to their different trainers most of the time. She wants to make it up to her the past three years.

Then it ended when Mi Lao let go of Fan, obviously eager to scope out the whole area.

"Can I go out to see the place, mom?" she asked, her green eyes glittering.

"Yes, but if you have someone to look after you." Fan said. "This place is new to you; I don't want you lost."

At that moment, Po came in and heard the conversation as he walked in. "I can take her if you want."

Mi Lao's eyes shimmered like emeralds after Po said that and she giggled continuously. "Mooooooom, _can I…?"_ she squealed.

Fan just couldn't say no to those large eyes. "Just be careful."

"Don't worry, Miss Fan," Po said. "I'll take good care of her. I just came over to see if you all were set in."

"Thank you, Po."

"Come on, Mi Lao, buddy." Po said as he walked out of the hall.

Mi Lao tugged on her mother's shirt and as she bent down, the kitten whispered in her ear, "He called me '_buddy_'!" and ran out the door.

Fan laughed after she left and went into Lu Ke's room to check it out.

All his art supplies were organized into a corner in neat paper stacks, cups filled with pencils and brushes and jars of paints. He was just putting a pencil into a cup when he noticed Fan entering his room.

"Hey there, Fan." He greeted.

"Hey." She said, lowering her eyes at Lu Ke. "I saw you and Ke Li Si looking at Viper."

"Don't talk about it…"Lu Ke said, blushing.

"Would you like to talk about it, Ke?" Fan called to the next rooms.

"No, I don't!" she heard from afar.

"I knew it!" Fan said teasingly. "You both have a crush on Viper!"

"We don't!" the snakes both said.

"Don't you two think that I didn't notice! I saw you staring at her with shiny eyes!" she said, fluttering her lashes.

"We were just admiring her for being our training, is all." Ke Li Si argued.

"And doing goo-goo eyes?" she laughed.

"Just change the subject, Fan." Lu Ke said, still blushing.

"Okay, well, I'm just going to walk around here for a bit, okay guys?" Fan told them.

"We'll be here, getting the rest we deserve." Lu Ke said as he coiled himself into a roll and took a nap.

The day passed by for the group very fast. Mi Lao looked at the whole palace with extreme hyperactivity, especially given that she was with Po the whole time. Fan looked around on her own and took her time, looking at all the beautiful and clean structures compared to the ruined buildings back at home. She made mental notes to where everything is and where it is next to.

The group then had lunch with Po and the Five, which they thought was engaging in account to Po's cooking and really filled their stomachs. Though, Fan was craving chow mein more than the noodle soup, which Po gladly did for the peahen.

After lunch, Ke Li Si and Lu Ke went to check out the place after their nap and because of her eagerness, Mi Lao went out again to play around with Po assigned to babysit her again. Fan stayed by herself, walking off into distant places, but close by the Jade Palace boundaries.

She was at the Wu Dan Mountains when she was thinking about her city. How long would they survive without her? Are they disappointed in her for leaving them when it was for their own good? _Would Si Lai go there since I'm not there…?_

She forced the thoughts away as she looked into the distance, watching the sun set with colors she hated merge together into something she thought was beautiful.

When she walked back, it was already dark. The palace blanketed by the navy-blue sky filled with dazzling stars glittering. A few clouds were passing by slowly. It was so peaceful; she was so enthralled by it all. A silent zephyr blew against her as she almost reached the student barracks, feeling as if it were music in the dark quietness.

They all ate dinner and had a nice chat with the Five, getting to know them better. After they were done, they all went to the barracks to sleep.

She arrived to her room, seeing a tired Mi Lao sitting on the hammock, her eyes drooping. She yawned after she saw her mother coming into her room.

"Hi, mom." She yawned.

"Hi, sweetie."

Fan nudged the kitten to fall on her back and as she obeyed, the peahen grabbed the blankets and set them on her, making sure that they were comfortable for her. When she finally tucked Mi Lao in, she bent down to her furry head, and kissed her daughter on her forehead.

"Goodnight, Mi Lao." She whispered.

"Night, mom." The kitten silently purred back.

As she came out, she had many thoughts in her head, but one question that she kept asking herself over and over and over was "Who is Lord Shen?". She knew from the look of the peacock's face that she was missing something in their brief conversation and the fact that she doesn't know was itching her. She also had a perfectly good reason not to know Lord Shen or anything else occurring at the moment. Ever since the rampage, the city has been unpopular doe to its deadly state, so any news that came all over the place would never reach to the Forest of Prosperity. Everyone was oblivious to the world around them changing and basically stood the way it did ten years ago.

The only exception was the actual Jade Palace goose that advertized the Furious Five and the Dragon Warrior to come to all parts of China and that was how Mi Lao's interest on the group started. But other than that, nothing was new at the Forest of Prosperity. It was always how much progress went in fixing the city (which was very slow), what food is left and how much of a "slacker" Fan is. To Fan, it was as if time stopped in the city.

But she had to know about Lord Shen. Curiosity burns deep within her soul that she has to know an answer, and she's determined to do so with this. But how should she get an answer without spilling out the truth that she's met him? There has to be some way to find out. But then she remembered that Shifu said that if she had any questions, he or the other masters could be approachable. She thought he may have her answer.

Fan ran around the Jade Palace to look for the red panda, searching the Hall of Warriors, the Training Hall, everywhere, but no small panda was in sight. She then walked outside in the fresh air to check out any place within the Jade Palace boundaries if he was outside. She walked over to a quiet and secluded area where there only stood a single peach tree, but next to it was a sprouting stem of what's going to be another peach tree. It was silent, with only the sounds of crickets chirping in the night. She looked up to the tree full of fresh, delectable peaches, the fur almost glowing.

But even though she was craving one for a small snack, she came here for something more important. She stood on the cliff looking over the valley, stretching far and wide into the distant fog of the soft-looking clouds. Some lanterns were on below where the village stood, almost looking like a group of stars glowing around her. _If only we could sleep at night like this._

_Rustle._

She turned suddenly to see if someone, maybe the red panda, would show up, but there was nobody. She gazed at the city until she heard a voice behind her say, "Enjoying the view, I presume?"

"_Shhhhhhhhhh-SUGAR honey iced tea!"_ Fan screamed as she jumped in the air, her tail feathers springing up from the surprise. It was Master Shifu. She kept her footing to not lose her balance. She calmed herself down, her body feathers pressed back to her, leaving only her head and neck feathers still stressed and frizzy. "Master Shifu, sir!"

"I apologize for the surprise." He said calmly, holding his staff next to him proudly. "I tend to do that often."

"But how'd you—?"

"It's pretty hard to explain. Well, to you. But soon, young one, you will."

She was still freaking out, her heart pounding hard against her chest. She took a few breaths to compose herself.

"Oh, geez…" she sighed. "I… I came to see you."

"Oh?" Shifu said as he stood on the cane in a masterly fashion.

"I have been wondering with… the place and all and what with the citizens and the Five…" she went on, still thinking how to say it. "Who is Lord Shen?"

Shifu opened his eyes just then and looked down at the peahen. Fan could tell that he was surprised.

"Who is Lord Shen?" the red panda repeated. "You don't know?"

"No, I don't. Master, we don't have much to know about at my home because any news just passed us by due to our… status."

He nodded in understanding. "Ah, I see. Well, why do you want to know?"

She hadn't thought of that. "Well, I've… just heard of him recently and I'm just curious. Who is he?"

Shifu hopped off the staff and onto the soil, beside Fan and looked over the distance. She followed his lead.

"Lord Shen…" he began. "Was a notorious threat to China."

_A threat?_ She thought. She listened to more.

"He was the peacock next in line to rule Gongmen City, but after he found out about his fortune, which… involved the Dragon Warrior, he went to invade a panda village, but… it seems that he didn't get every panda. The Dragon Warrior escaped as an infant in a radish basket, or so I'm told, and Mr. Ping found him."

Fan couldn't believe what she was hearing. Even when she didn't want to, she could picture the white peacock plundering an innocent village and the panda she's met as a tiny baby. _How can this be the Shen who saved me…?_

"But, he was exiled from his home as a punishment and since then, he's been planning to conquer China for revenge on his parents. He even attempted killing Master Thundering Rhino, imprisoning Master Ox and Croc, blowing out the Dragon Warrior and the Five in his ancestral home, almost killing the Dragon Warrior himself. But with courage, the Dragon Warrior defeated the bird."

_No. He did all of that?_ She thought. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. _But what did he do after his defeat?_

"Then, when all of Shen's fleet was destroyed, he lunged at his nemesis, but was crushed by his own cannon. Glad that he's not around anymore…"

"He… _died…?_" Fan asked, stiffening.

"How could he not? Especially after the firework explosion when the cannon fell on him. _Priceless._" He replied, reminiscing the moment.

Fan started to feel sick. Not only about the horrible things that Lord Shen has done, but also about the fact that she met a _dead person. _She almost felt like throwing up.

She recollected herself and drew in a deep breath and exhaled before she asked nervously, "Is that it?"

"Oh, yes." Shifu replied. "He was determined to destroy kung fu."

"Destroy it?"

He nodded. "Yes. He wanted to destroy the art of kung fu even when he himself is a trained bird."

_Why would he be so worked up on destroying an art? _Fan thought to herself. _Maybe he didn't want to fight them himself. Maybe… he was scared or something._ She didn't know why she was defending Shen, but then she realized she is because of what he did for her. _But how can this be the same Shen?_

"Wow…" she whispered, at the facts, at the memory of the previous night, _at him._

"Indeed." Shifu said. "But good thing that he's not here now, otherwise, he would become a huge threat in all of China."

"Yes," Fan said before yawning. "Well, I'm going to go get some shut-eye, Master Shifu."

"I appreciate you consulting me, Miss Fan." He smiled broadly, holding up his staff, looking like a wise figure. "Goodnight."

"Goodnight, sir." She said back.

After hearing the facts, she feared what would become of the future. Did he save her to gain some sympathy and then would trick her thinking that he was a nice guy? _No way._ She now knows who she dealt with, but then she remembered the way he just helped her. She remembered the way he was getting frustrated trying to cure her. He would have left her as a lump of feathers and bones. He would have ignored the fight between her and Si Lai. _But he didn't_. But she can't count on still thinking that he's a warm person for saving her. Still, she's determined to keep him a secret… temporarily.

As she walked back to the student barracks quietly, she debated whether to tell Lu Ke and Ke Li Si about what she's heard and what happened the night before, and the morning.

She's been thinking about it all day that she's got to be honest to her friends. She couldn't find it in her heart to lie to them. They knew about Si Lai the moment they volunteered themselves to help her, so it was their duty to protect the city from her. Either way, they were involved. Besides, it was highly likely that Cai Ren told Si Lai about her friends helping her. She just didn't know how to spit out the truth to them. She also had the fear about coming clean about Shen. She promised him that she wouldn't tell anyone and she was always known to be an excellent secret holder, but she would never keep secrets from her close buddies.

She finally chose her decision: she'll tell them.

She stepped into the barracks just then and gazed at the closed doors of her friends. The moonlight spilled the paper walls and displayed silhouettes of them. She didn't hesitate to wake them when she opened the door to Ke Li Si's room. He was startled a bit from the faint noise and looked at Fan with lazy eyes. He was curled around a wooden bar on the ceiling.

"Is it morning already…?" he mumbled.

"No," she said with a breathy laugh. "I just… I need to talk to you. And Lu Ke."

Ke Li Si was still trying to wake up as he let out a long yawn. "Do you? Do you know what time it is?"

"It's important. It's something you both have to know…"

Ke Li Si gave a last, long yawn before he was fully awake and responded. "Sure, Fan. I'll go get him."

He slid down to the wooden floor and slithered over to Lu Ke's room. There was a bit of whispering as Fan listened, and soon enough, the two snakes emerged from the room and came towards her.

"What is it, Fan?" Lu Ke asked kindly, wiping his still-sleepy eye.

Fan couldn't talk about it here; there were people who could listen to them easily. "Let's go outside. We'll talk there."

Unsure about Fan, they agreed and followed her out the barracks. The moon was out, shining bright and splayed lunar light over the trees and buildings. The crickets continued their chirping song.

"I have to come clean to you guys." Fan said. "I can't find it in myself to lie to you two. So… please listen."

The two waited for her to spit it out.

"I remembered when you guys came; you wanted to help me out with protecting the city. Whether the request was big or small, you were willing to do it. This counts as well. So you really should know this.

When I went off to retrieve my bracelet, I couldn't find it in the tree house. When I decided to give it up and leave, the bracelet was right there on the floor. I didn't know how it was there when I already looked around, but then… _she _was there."

Lu Ke and Ke Li Si knew who _she_ was.

"It was the scariest moment in my life… just seeing the one person responsible for everything. And at the time I thought that my life was officially over. She beat me down hard and I didn't fight her back at all. I was thinking about you two, the city and Mi Lao. It was like I knew that the book of my life was drawing to a close. But then… a flash of white came over my eyes before I fell uncautious.

When I woke up, it was morning already and I had acupuncture needles in my wing. I met my rescuer and he cured my bruise. You may just think, 'Oh, Fan, that's great.', but I found out recently that my rescuer… is none other than Lord Shen."

She broke her promise.

"Who is he?" Lu Ke asked.

"I didn't know who he was either. So I asked Master Shifu if he knew anything and he told me…" she let out a long breath and continued, "… that Lord Shen was a notorious person. He did many horrible things. But what scares me the most was when he mentioned that he was presumably _dead._ He told me not to tell anyone and I made that a promise. It confused me. It confuses me so much that a dead guy, who did evil plots, would rescue me. Why would he rescue me at all…?"

They all fell silent.

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you earlier, but that feather you saw, my bruise. It all linked to last night. Now I'm thinking that Si Lai might get me soon…"

Both snakes slithered to her side, comforting her in her presence. She knew then that they forgave her.

"It's fine, Fan." Ke Li Si said. "We understand."

"Yeah," Lu Ke said. "At least you know now that we'll have your back. It's what we came to you for."

Fan's beak curved into a small smile. "Thanks guys."

"You're welcome." Lu Ke said, beaming.

"But can you guys do something for me?"

They both nodded.

"Please don't tell anyone about Shen. As much as I want to turn him in, I'm a sucker for promises… And when I'm alone, please look after me unseen. I don't know if Si Lai may be watching me now, planning an attack of any kind or from Lord Shen… I don't feel safe anymore."

"Like we said, Fan; we got your back." Ke Li Si reassured. "We'll be around."

Fan turned and hugged her two best friends. They hugged her back. "Thank you very much, you guys. This means so much to me. Not only to protect me, but so I can live to care for Mi Lao."

"Anything for you and Mi Lao." Lu Ke said.

After a minute in the embrace, they all parted and decided to go to bed.

"First day of training tomorrow. We have to be ready." Ke Li Si reminded them.

"Let's go to sleep." Fan yawned.

They walked inside the barracks, preparing for a good night's sleep. Fan slept standing on one leg, flamingo-style, next to the hammock that Mi Lao slept in, not wanting to bother her. Ke Li Si and Lu Ke slept in their own rooms peacefully.

Outside the barracks, someone was watching the walls of the room in which Fan slept in. That someone was hiding beneath the trees, the shade covering him up. He knew he had no right to be there at all, but he just had an odd impulse to come. He grew envious of the peahen having such loyal and supporting friends, even despite not hearing the conversation, but he knew it from the way they spoke to each other, the expressions exchanged, the sympathy and encouragement. He wanted that. But then he thought that maybe the peahen deserved it. He knew it since he met her. That someone hiding, watching her, was Shen.


	8. Chapter 7

The sun rose the next morning, tinting the sky into a bright hot pink, creating a very homey look to the Jade Palace. The jade stone on the buildings shimmered and glittered with the warm morning sun's rays, welcoming a new day.

Fan woke up with the warmness of the sun spilling through the paper walls. As she tried to wake up, she thought of how great that sleep was. _The best sleep I've ever had…_ Qiu Qiu was right about her getting more sleep. She gave a small grin at the thought. The first thing she looked for was her daughter, whom she found still sleeping on the hammock on her side. Fan smiled at the sight. Mi Lao's cheek was squished as she slept, making her look more fluffy. When she yawned, Fan melted.

She figured that it's early since there was no other sound made from the masters or either Lu Ke and Ke Li Si. She thought it was good. She wouldn't have to be embarrassed for being late to her very first day of kung fu lessons. _My first day…!_ She was frankly nervous about it, but it must be done. Besides, the masters could've been in a similar state when they were training, so it shouldn't make a difference.

Fan stretched her wings apart her body and felt her muscles relax with a long sigh of physical relief. She did the same with her legs and neck until she felt she was ready. She went to the hammock and shook the little blob of fluff softly not to wake her with an attitude.

"Mi Lao," she whispered. "Wake up, baby."

The kitten moved to her side and groaned.

"Kitty, come on." Fan urged, giggling at her silly daughter, then thought of something that would most likely wake her. "Mi Lao, if you don't get up, you may not train today."

Mi Lao rose from the hammock suddenly with wide-open eyes and yelled, "Oh, my gosh! You're _right!_"

The masters and Le Li Si and Lu Ke immediately woke up from Mi Lao's loud outburst and they all groaned.

All except Crane, who said, "Oh, come on you guys! She's a kid. At least she's the first to have great enthusiasm."

"Sorry, guys!" Mi Lao said, with true innocence in her voice.

"Ehhh…" all except Crane and Fan said.

Mi Lao frowned. "I think they're mad at me…"

Fan hugged her beneath her wings and said with her maternal and soothing voice, "No, no, Mi Lao. It's morning and we sometimes get like this. I'm sure they're not mad at you."

"Okay, mom."

"Now go get ready with Master Tigress." She said lastly before giving a peck on her daughter's forehead.

Mi Lao ran out the door and right when she walked beside, she held out her paw and held onto her master's paw.

Tigress stiffened at the sudden gesture of a child she's only met the day before. She never knew the gesture from anyone, even besides children. All this time, she assumed that she was the least favorite from kids because of her serious and strong personality, until she felt the tiny paw of Mi Lao.

"Umm…" she said.

"Besides Po, you're my favorite, too." Mi Lao smiled.

She was struck by those words. "Oh… really?"

"Yep. I think you're super-cool." The kitten replied, swinging Tigress's arm back and forth with hers. "I want to be like you. But I don't want to be completely hardcore. Just enough to be brave like you." She said.

_I think I'm going to like this kid._ Tigress thought. She sent a smile to her student and said, "Well, come on, you little squirt. You want to be tough like me, you have to train hard."

"I can do hard!"

"Great. That's a great start."

"But can you do something, Tigress?" Mi Lao asked, her eyes shining.

"Yes?"

"Can I hold your paw?"

How could Tigress turn down something that she's always wanted? _Acceptance._ It wasn't like this in Bau Gu Orphanage, and it certainly wasn't like this before the Dragon Warrior came. Mi Lao's the first child to ever admire her for who she is. She was touched.

"Sure, kid." She grinned, offering her open paw to her student. Mi Lao grabbed that opportunity and they both went off.

Lu Ke and Ke Li Si were coming out of the barracks just then, their eyes still dull and tired from waking up. They slithered slow and steady, but until they were passing Viper, they opened their eyes and slid past her, spines straightened and determined-looking.

"Are you two okay?" Viper asked.

"Oh, um…" Lu Ke said.

"No, not at all. We're fine."Ke Li Si answered.

"Yeah, exactly. Perfectly fine."

"You're blushing." Viper indicated to them.

With that, they blushed even more.

"What? No. It's just uhh…"

"It's not really big of a deal…"

Viper stared at the two as they continued stammering.

"You know, maybe I can train one of you first and the other another time today because you two seem … skittish." She said carefully.

"Oh," they both said.

"Yes, maybe… Lu Ke?"

"What?" Ke Li Si gasped.

"Me?"

"Yes, you. Ke Li Si, you may have to wait until I'm done with Lu Ke."

As she slithered away with a blushing red Lu Ke, Ke Li Si watched with huge eyes. Fan stood beside him watching the two.

"Why aren't you going?" she asked.

"She's training Lu Ke first," he sighed. "… Because she thinks that we're 'skittish'."

"Well, you two _did_ act odd around her." Fan smiled, nudging her friend with her wing.

"Okay." He responded, desperate to change the subject. "Well, at least I get to watch you like we promised last night."

"Yeah, that's a good thing." She replied.

"Fan!" a voice called out.

The two glanced behind to find Crane walking towards them, dusting off his hat. He seemed fond of his hat as much as Lu Ke. He had on one of those sweet-looking smiles on as he came over and his gold eyes glimmered in the new day.

"Are you ready?" he asked as he placed on his hat.

Fan only shrugged nervously. "Aw, I don't know… maybe."

"No, no, no. There's either a yes or a no." he grinned, wagging a feather in her face. "Are you ready?"

Fan knew she had to give an answer, rolling her eyes at the idea, but Crane insisted.

"Yes, I'm ready." She laughed.

"Great! Let's get started, then!" he said with joy.

Mantis jumped behind and exclaimed, "I don't wanna miss this!"

"Miss what, exactly?" Crane said as he lowered an eyebrow at Mantis after he jumped on the bird's back.

"Just to see how this plays out. There's nothin' on my schedule, so, this may be entertaining." The insect said with a grin.

"I think she'll do great, Mantis." Crane replied.

Mantis only mumbled when Crane noticed that Ke Li Si was with Fan.

"Hey, isn't Viper-?"

"Ah-ah-ahh… I don't want to talk about it." The python said, blushing again.

"Yeah, it's complicated." Fan joked, making her friend squint at her.

"Oh, well, do you want to wait, or-?"

"I'm with her. It's kind of a… friend thing, y'know?" Ke Li Si explained.

"Or a brother-sister thing. Huh?" Fan joked again while attempting to hug Ke Li Si when he pushed her away playfully. They always had a sibling kind of relationship ever since they met. There were rare cases of arguments, but they really hit it off well.

"Oh, that's fine! You can watch with Mantis!" Crane said and then came closer to Ke Li Si's ear and whispered, "And good thing, too, because I need you to watch Mantis. He likes to make fun of newcomers a bit, so this'll help your friend a bit."

Mantis crossed his "thingies", obvious that he heard Crane.

"So, let's go on then!" and they all made their way to the training room.

Shifu came then to wake the students and trainees, humming his favorite Chinese tune cheerfully as he grabbed the handles of the door, his eyes peacefully closed. When the doors were opened apart, he said, "Good morning, students!" he opened his eyes. "Are you all ready for—"

He glanced at all the opened and unclosed doors. He looked through all of them and gave a small chuckle. "Early birds."

Shen woke up when the rising sun was hitting his den. He opened his narrow eyes so carefully that he wouldn't be blinded by the brightness. When he could see enough, it was calm. But when he decided to open his eye a little wider, the warmth burned his eye.

"_DAAAAAAAAAAUUGHHH!_" he whispered loudly. "_SSSSSS-STUPID SUNLIGHT!"_

He turned his head to let his eyes evade the sunlight and they slowly woke up. He gave a loud, long yawn before looking down on the warm soil. There was a small bowl of hot noodles beside him. _What? No peaches this time? _He thought. He bent his neck down and sniffed at the noodles' hot fumes steaming in ribbons of smoke. _Oh, this smells goooood…_ He licked his beak eagerly and picked up a single strand of noodle, slurped and gulped it down his throat. The warm noodle passing through his gullet gave him a shock of deliciousness. _This is better than peaches._ He had to admit, this was probably the best thing that came out today, and good thing it was in the morning. The start of the day.

Once he finished the noodles, he couldn't get enough, so he proceeded to drinking the liquid soup and gulped it down, savoring the taste.

"I see you like the secret ingredient soup." A familiar voice said. Shen spotted Po walking towards him and immediately swung his head up, hoping the panda didn't see him eating. _ How embarrassing…_

"It was… satisfactory." The peacock replied, regaining his professional composure. "And I wouldn't say 'like', but it was, as you say, 'okay'."

Every day, it seemed that Shen would amuse Po more and more with his pride.

"Whatever you say, Shen." Po grinned. "So you've got anything to say to me?"

_Say what to him?_ "Excuse me?"

"Y'know…"

He, in fact, doesn't know.

"I know what?"

"The magic word?"

_How old does he think I am? Three?_

"Are you serious?"

"Of course."

Shen didn't want to resort to this. "… Thanks?"

"Like you mean it."

There's no way arguing with this panda. If he objects, then he would come at him with those cheesy phrases of wisdom that sounded like they came from a fortune cookie. And fighting wouldn't do anything either for two reasons. One, it would be for a stupid thing; saying "thank you". And two, he doesn't want to die again by this panda for being stubborn. So he cooperated.

"Th-th-th-th…" he strained, but came out with the friendliest grin he could feign with and said, "_Thank you._"

Po shrugged in acceptance. "Fair enough."

Shen's grin disappeared to his normal scowl and thought that he was being too cold to the bear. He did give him shelter. He did come to forgive him when he could've killed him on sight. He's doing a lot for him to remain a secret. He contemplated this while Po gathered Shen's clean, empty bowl and as he started walking away, he started to panic a little.

"Well, I'm going to wash this. I'll be back in a bit." He said.

_He's going away._ Shen thought. Never had he ever think of making the panda stay; he always thought he was dim, but for some odd reason, he needed to say something to him.

"Wait." He said anxiously, cringing a bit when Po looked straight at him in the eyes. Shen immediately looked down

"Yeah?"

He didn't know where to start. "I, ah…" he said placidly. "I… appreciate what you're doing, panda. And… I was wondering, if…"

Po waited.

"…if you can teach me about inner peace."

Those words were music to Po's tiny ears. He couldn't help but curve his mouth into a friendly smile and said contently, "You don't know how long I've been waiting for you to ask."

Shen's bright scarlet eyes looked back up at the panda's, a bit elated to his acceptance. "So, you'll help me?"

"Of course I will, dude. And I am already." Po replied, grinning.

"Ah, yes. Why didn't I think of that?"

Po laughed softly again. "How about we start tonight? Right when everyone else is asleep?"

Shen thought about it. It's not like he has anything to do later tonight, or any night for that matter. He took a deep sigh and answered with, "I'll look forward to it."

"Awesome." Po said, winking. He started walking up the steps and before he was completely gone, Shen called him again.

"_Hey, panda!_"

Po looked down at the peacock.

"_Bring me some of that noodle soup later today as well! I order you to!"_

Po laughed. "All right, Shen."

After he left, Shen then sat in his den. He tried to occupy himself with his lance, carving random doodles on the barks of trees that he knew were supremely horrible. After he was on the brink of boredom, he lets out a long groan. He couldn't wait until this afternoon for company or tonight. It's been like this the past three weeks and he's got to do something.

He tapped his lance on the soil while pondering. Then he remembered Fan. _She's training here, right?_ He looked up at the gleaming palace. For some reason, he had a fighting urge to see her again. There was some kind of mystery to her, especially how she's never heard of him before. He's desperate to find out.

Disobeying Po's orders, he placed his lance beneath his robes, flapped his wings and soared up the stairs and before he could be seen, he hid atop the rooftops, peeking at the ground if anyone was around. Good for him, no life was in sight.

He glided over rooftops carefully, each landing resulting in a tiny _clink_ carefully sounding. He knew that he was over the training rooms as he heard the sound of grunting and intense physical training coming closer and closer. But there were many training buildings all merged in one. He glided over a building and listened closely below the wooden planks, but everything was muffled.

He cautiously looked for a hole, a crack, anything to see who's in there. With no success, Shen eagerly dug his metal toe into the wood and in a slow and precise manner, drove the metal down to do its work quietly. Once it was deep enough, he saw the hole size, guessing that it was fit for one eye to see. He bent his head and placed his right eye, looking straight down.

But unfortunately, there was no peahen. It was only two vipers, a male and a female. The male was wearing a hat and was already tired and beat. He guessed that he was one of Fan's friends. The female was familiar, alright. It was that Viper chick that was with the Five.

"Come on, Lu Ke, you can do it." The female said. "It's not that hard."

"That's easy for _you_ to say!" the viper by the name of "Lu Ke" said. "You're a master!"

"Well, even in the beginning, us _masters_ messed up a reasonable number of times. It's natural. Now get up and try again."

"I _can't_. I'm sore, and I—"

"_Please…?"_ Viper pleaded.

Lu Ke looked down and replied, "Oh, all right."

Shen got bored and lifted his head up, spotting another rooftop ahead by a few yards away. He glided to that next rooftop and drilled his foot again like the last roof and peered in. He spotted two cats: a tall orange one and—hey. That was that Tigress character. He remembered the way she growled in his face before. He wouldn't want to deal with her now without chains on her. But then he noticed the second cat with her, who was much smaller and had much darker fur, bark brown close to black to be exact.

Also with them was a Monkey, who was cheering for the little kitten. Shen assumed that the little girl was taking lessons as well. He examined the scene between the tiger and the kitten.

"I already repeated the move twice for you already, kid. You think you can do it?" Tigress asked admiringly to her student.

"Um, I think so." The kitten blushed modestly. "Let me just…"

She did the same kung fu maneuver exactly as Tigress taught her successfully, fully impressing Shen. After she stood in a finished posture, Tigress nodded in respect to her young student.

"Did I do it?" the cat humbly asked, nervously tugging on the fold of her pants.

"You did excellent," Tigress complimented with a small smile. "You just have to give it a bit more feeling."

"Oh, I get you."

"Now try again and we'll see what happens."

Shen moved on to the next building and did the same like all the others, but there was nothing. He proceeded to the next. Nothing.

Then there was one more building. He'd bet his life that Fan was in there for sure, but at the same time, she might not be there, like the last two buildings, but he started to quietly drill his metal toe into the wood anyway for the heck of it.

He stuck his eye through the hole and watched. There were some people in there. He recognized the Crane and the miniscule Mantis. A python he didn't recognize at all slithered in as well. But everyone didn't matter until he saw Fan come into the picture. He looked at her closely this morning. The morning sunlight played over her translucent true blue colors, creating a gorgeous gold-green color. Her crown of feathers also glimmered a bright aqua-green hues. Her chocolate brown-colored wings looked bright and soft. Sometimes Shen wished that he himself would possess such feathers at birth, but instead was cursed with the color of a deathly polar white. He wished that he was born normal, and maybe that his parents would've loved him if he was genetically normal. But no, he was a cursed albino for the rest of his life.

But at least he had something to admire about the peahen; she had extravagant-looking feathers that he envied so much. He had to admit that this time seeing her, she looks beautiful than the first time they encountered each other.

The four were at Crane's main training room and everyone settled in, Mantis sitting on the sidebars with Ke Li Si to watch as Fan and Crane took over the platform. Fan glanced around the small building and was awed by the strong wooden feel to it all. The only light that shone the morning light was from the opened door, a small skylight and some lanterns hanging on the sides of the training room.

"Wow," Fan said breathlessly.

"Looks great, eh?" Crane said cheerfully.

"Great? It's amazing." She loomed over to see more of the building. "It's so pristine and clean, organized. I envy you all so much."

"Excuse me?"

"Well, it's personal. We are still… trying to keep things back in order and we're not even close to almost."

Crane placed his wing on Fan's shoulder and said to her humbly, "Don't worry, Miss Lady Fan. I'll teach you well and you'll do great."

"Yeah, we'll see." Mantis laughed to himself. Ke Li Si gave the insect a small smack upside the head. "OW!"

"Okay, Fan, what I'm about to teach you is _very _simple, okay?" Crane said in a trusting manner.

"Okay."

"First, I'll teach you something basic and easy that even you can't flaw in. First," he stood up, his leg lifted halfway and his wings extending, impressing Fan with his wingspan. "Stand up like this and," he flicked his leg into a quick kick and returned to his position. "… You kick."

Fan figured it was pretty easy, but she knew that any further lessons would be much harder. He has to take any basic move she can follow and move up from there.

"So that's it? Just a one-legged kick?" she asked, a bit unsure.

"Sure."

"Okay,"

Fan timidly lifted her foot gently, but being the clumsy peahen she is, she tipped to the side a little and lost her balance. She herself doesn't know why she lost balance when she practically slept with one leg her whole life. Probably she was being so pressured right now with herself.

"Don't worry, my lady. It'll take time to get used to the balancing. Just get through with this and we'll work on more balancing later." Crane reassured, but it only added more intimidation to Fan for some odd reason.

But she managed to tell herself to try again. She is one to persist against any odds and she must face this bravely.

"Alright," she said. "I'm going again."

She lifted her leg again and took a deep breath to keep herself tranquil and calm. She did manage to balance this time and when she kicked, she felt relieved and felt excited.

"I did it!" she exclaimed, then faced Ke Li Si from afar. "I did it!"

"Yeah! That's great!" he shouted back. Mantis was bored next to the python, yawning and craving for some better excitement.

"You did good, Fan. Only…"

Those words drilled into Fan's cranium and felt as if her jovial feelings shattered into a million pieces like broken glass.

"I didn't do it right?"

"Oh, no, you did, but your kick needs to be harder." Crane said passively.

"Harder?"

"Yes, I mean, if you want to beat an enemy, you have to hit 'em hard, right?"

"I… I guess."

"Then, try again, and this time, hit harder."

Fan nodded at his advice and readied herself again. Her leg rose again and extended her wings. She closed her eyes, hoping that she'd get it right this time. She gave one last gulp, feeling it pass through her throat and then swiftly, confidently kicked with all her might and returned to position.

For a moment, Fan felt like she's finally accomplished something in a long time. She felt like for once, she felt perfect and that nothing could stop her just because of this one lesson. A flash of gaiety spread throughout her body like she's never felt before and it all felt like it time somehow stopped and she was the only one moving. Like everything was in slow motion. After this, Fan would be so proud of herself and her daughter and friends would be so proud of her. And she bet if she passed this lesson, she can do possibly _anything._

But something was wrong. She heard a huge wail pass through the building, and as she did she returned to her reality from her fantasy and witnessed something horrifying.

She opened her eyes immediately and spotted Crane on the floor, yelling and wailing in pain as he spasmed, clutching at a certain part of himself that Fan was embarrassed to admit.

"_YOOOOOOOOOOOOOOWWWWWWWW!" _Crane cried in the highest pitch he could manage to let out horribly.

"Oh, jeez!" Ke Li Si exclaimed, averting his eyes with a part of his long body not to see the scene.

"_Whoa!" _Mantis yelled. "_That _has got to hurt!"

"You're not helping, you know." The python murmured to Mantis, still holding his gaze away from the injured bird.

"Really, this is the most exciting thing happening in a _long time!"_

Ke Li Si smacked Mantis off the sidebar with effort that could knock only him.

Crane was still on the floor, screaming in high-pitched squeals that can't be heard outside the walls of the building. The fact seeing him made Fan horrible worried and embarrassed that her face flushed as if all the blood in her body went to her head.

"Oh, no! Oh, _no!" _exclaimed she. "Oh, my _goodness!_ Are you alright?"

"What do you think?" Crane squeaked in a raspy and painful voice.

"Oh, no! I am _so _sorry!" Fan cried, stepping over to Crane to help him up.

"No, no. It's fine. I can get up." He implored.

"Are you sure?"

"Definitely. Just let me—"he lifted a leg to get up, but that didn't prove to make the pain regress than increase immensely. "_OOOOOOOOOOWWW!"_

"Again, I am _so greatly, supremely, PAINFULLY sorry!"_ Fan yelled, feeling tears already coming to her eyes.

Failing a basic kung fu move was just one thing, but kicking your mentor there was a far worse thing that Fan could ever feel embarrassed for.

Not knowing what to do, Fan tearfully ran straight for the door. Ke Li Si noticed her escaping and slithered up in front of her in a flash.

"Fan, just wait—"

"_Please! Just leave me alone!"_

She shoved the python away from her path and stormed out of the training room, leaving only tiny little puddles of her ashamed tears on the wooden floor. Ke Li Si knew that she was hurt and humiliated terribly and wanted to make her feel better, even if there was a chance of not succeeding, and didn't hesitate to follow her trail of tears to fix this problem.

"Faaaaan!" he called as he slithered on.

Shen witnessed the moment and thought that Fan had every right to run away from such an appalling incident. He almost felt sorry for her as he watched her push her snake friend away and out the door. He raised his head and walked to the edge of the building, seeing her run like a crazed chicken desperate to be anywhere but there. He then saw the python following her trail and calling her name. He heard the shrill cries of the injured kung fu master below the roof that he sworn could shatter many mirrors in the valley. Annoyed to stay any longer, he leaped off the rooftop and silently glided into a nearby tree to follow the despairing peahen, already knowing where she was from the high altitude of the tree.

"Can I take a break already?" Lu Ke gasped from extreme exhaustion. He almost felt as if his body was already in knots. _How can she do all these moves? _"I need a break."

"If it's necessary, Lu Ke, then go ahead." Viper said, concerned for the poor guy. "I'll wait here when you're refreshed."

Lu Ke tiredly slithered out the door, breathing heavily from the intense physical work until Fan accidently bumped into him, the collision making the forlorn peahen fall to the ground in a thud, but before he could ask her if she was okay, she got up as if nothing happened and continued running until she was out of Lu Ke's sight.

"Fan?" he asked after she disappeared.

"You saw her?" Ke Li Si asked as he came to Lu Ke's side.

"Yeah, she bumped into me." He said, repositioning his Asian hat to its right place. "But I don't understand; is she okay?"

"I'll tell you when we find her. She's just … a bit startled right now from the lesson."

"What?"

"I'll tell you this. Honestly, she messed up."

"So? How's that a big deal? I messed up with Viper and—"

"No, Lu Ke." Ke Li Si said uneasily. "It's far worse than just a minor mess up. You'll see."

"Oh…"

They both followed Fan's tracks, examining the floor for any tracks.

Fan ran with all her energy to somewhere she could not be seen, somewhere she could be alone and no one would bother her. Someplace that she would somehow forget about the bitter madness of what happened, dreading of reimagining the moment again as if it just occurred once more. She ran as far as she could until she felt isolated enough and away from all of them. _I just need a moment alone…_

She was at the Wu Dan Mountains when she slowed her pace. She pitifully walked next to a tree and laid her back against it. As she accidently reminisced the incident, she closed her eyes tightly, groaning deep in her throat as she slid her back down the tree, not caring if she scraped herself intentionally. She bit her tongue on purpose until it bled, tasting her own blood in her beak. That was all she could do show how much she was furious with herself. _Pathetic._ She couldn't do a simple kung fu move that a one year old could do. She deserved to have her tongue bitten.

But now she was humiliated to the highest limit. _I kicked him in the most painful place possible._ She imagined how her townspeople would react if they saw her do it. They would laugh at her and say how hopeless she is and that someone else should be a better leader than her.

_Kuang was right. He was SO right…_

"Fan! Faaaan!" Lu Ke's voice yelled in a soft echo.

Fan moaned in a repulsed manner. Not that she wanted to avoid them at all, but she just wanted some alone time right now and it seemed like everywhere she went, her friends would follow.

She turned from behind the trunk of the tree she laid against and spotted them coming already. It was too late to hide. They already quickened their pace as soon as they saw her.

"Fan! Wait up! Don't think about going anywhere this time." Ke Li Si said. "We need to talk."

"There's nothing to talk about, you guys!" Fan replied gloomily. "Just leave me right now, please."

"I still don't get this. What _happened_?" Lu Ke desperately asked.

"OOOOOOOOOHHH…" Fan moaned again.

"Umm…" Ke Li Si said, motioning the end of his tail for Lu Ke to lean closer. The python whispered to him what happened and once the story was done, his mouth dropped.

"_Fan did that?_" he whispered. Ke Li Si nodded.

"Yeah, now I'll be the whole laughingstock in all of China. 'The Lady who _accidently_ violated her teacher.'"Fan said scornfully. "This is _certainly _starting out great, indeed."

"Fan, you shouldn't beat yourself up so much." Lu Ke comfortingly said. "It's your first lesson. You're bound to make a mistake in the first day."

"Oh, like kicking your mentor in the _you-know-what's._" She retorted.

Lu Ke grew silent.

"Look, Fan. I know it looks bad and all, but I don't think Crane would take it too seriously. He seems like a nice guy and he'd probably forget about it for the most part." Ke Li Si added.

"It's not just about Crane," she replied. "It's about how horrible I am when I try to something good for my people, something beneficial, and it just _backfires _at me."

"Fan—"

"No, let me finish." She said, finally standing up. "And it's not only I disgraced myself, I also disgraced Mi Lao. How would she react if she heard that I hit Crane? She would be more embarrassed than I am that her own mother can't even pull off a simple move. And other than that, how can I expect to protect my city and my people if I can't do that and I _aim badly?"_

Ke Li Si and Lu Ke didn't like where this was going, so they only watched her ramble on.

"So, all in all, this seems like a waste of time for me! I mean, why did all this happen to me? Why did Si Lai come to blame _me_ for something my family and I didn't do? Honestly! And now I'm the most pathetic warrior that all of China's ever known! Oh, how great! Now I get my own pedestal! _Of shame!_"

Lu Ke noticed that the peahen was starting to look the other way, as if yelling at someone else and not directly at them.

"Oh, no. She's doing it again." He murmured to Ke Li Si so Fan wouldn't notice, not that she was seeing if they pay attention or not.

"I know, Lu Ke. I know." He responded, not turning his look to Lu Ke and continued staring at the mad peahen going on ranting.

"Should we do something?"

"I don't think there's anything we can do at this point but listen to her."

"Crud."

Shen followed the distant voices while he was jumping and gliding from tree to tree, which proved to be laborious when he realized that Fan ran very far. He was already panting out of breath when he heard the voices come closer and louder the more he moved in. His feet were becoming sore beneath the metal plating from the increasing pressure he placed when gripping carefully on a tree branch. He knew that Fan was very upset, but did she have to run a thousand miles to be alone? _Women. They complicate themselves…_

"_I put myself and my soul… all not put into consideration… now it's like my life's already dead!_"

He heard her voice coming clear, keeping up his pace to follow the sound before it goes away. When the trees were beginning to diminish, the scene was coming clear with the abundance of leaves and foliage lessening more and more. He came to the last tree, still hiding behind plants to hold his cover. He saw the peahen talking in circles, as if she were having a conversation with herself.

"I mean, what does it matter anymore? But I can't simply take my life! I've got Mi Lao and I can't just turn down my city either! You know what my people will do to me? They would take my body and burn it down to ashes and dance on it all!"

_Dance on her ashes? Is she really that bad with her city?_ He thought as he saw the peahen continue to her lovely banter and listened more.

"I mean, they don't care about how much I try to help _every single one of them! _ You know Hong? OOOOH! He just drives me crazy with his endless complaints! He says that I sit on a pedestal while the others work to death? _Work to death? _I'm risking my life and _soul _for all of them and I'm not the one working to death? I'm almost in debt! Seriously! Everything is just messed up!"

Shen realized that he was getting bored and tired of listening and thought now's the time to reveal himself to her, but how without scaring her?

"I embarrassed my daughter," she went on, looking the opposite way from Lu Ke and Ke Li Si, still a bit far away from her. "I embarrassed my city and most of all, _I embarrassed myself._"

Shen positioned himself to jump behind Fan quietly and on impulse, he leaped from the branch and presented himself, landing firmly on the ground.

Lu Ke and Ke Li Si's eyes widened at the sight of the peacock popping out of nowhere and they were afraid that he would see them. Luckily, he didn't seem to know that the two snakes were even present.

"Is that…?" Lu Ke said, quivering in a low voice.

"Let's see, he has white feathers and he is a peacock; I'm guessing he is."

"What should we do?"

"You're the one who's trained."

"Barely!" Lu Ke argued. "I'm just a beginner!"

"Oh, no."

They both slithered as quietly as they could behind a nearby bush so Shen wouldn't notice, watching the albino standing behind the chattering peahen.

"What about Fan?" Lu Ke asked.

"I'm sure she'll be fine, Lu Ke. Will she?" Ke Li Si added.

"May I remind you that my second sight ability is _involuntary_?"

"Sorry for forgetting." The python apologized, and then set his eyes back to the peafowls, concerned. "I just hope that she'll be alright."

"I don't think that I'll live up to this for my life!" Fan continued as Shen boldly walked towards her, hoping not to surprise her. "I mean, can things get any worse?"

"May I answer that question?" Shen said caustically.

Fan recognized that British-sounding voice and immediately turned around, only to scream horrifyingly loud and attempted to run away from him. _Oh, no you don't_. He grabbed the peahen into his wings and held her tight, not to let go.

"_Heeeeelp! HELP!"_ she yelled out in a high-pitched tone, squirming and trying to escape from the peacock's grasp, but he never softened his grip at all, ignoring her cries of mercy.

"_Be quiet!" _Shen ordered, tightening his grip every time she tried to wiggle herself out of the situation.

"Let me go!" she yelled back.

_What the hell is going on? First, she was kind to me and now she loathes me all of a sudden?_ He thought. He responded to her shouts by covering her mouth with his wing, silencing her by lot, but she was still grunting and groaning. He didn't want to make it seem like he was harassing her, so he let his grip loosen a bit, but she didn't receive the message and stepped on his foot, the metal deepening into his skin that caused a severe pain that made him yell out, "_Hey! You stop that!"_

She replied with a muffled groan. He was guessing that she wanted for him to let go of her beak. He looked her straight in the eyes, and they glared back at him with a despising look. _ She knows something about me._ He squinted his eyes; narrowing his scarlet red eyes at her to show her who she's messing with and only then did her eyes soften a bit, telling Shen that she surrendered. He knew because he saw that her brown eyes were glossy, shiny, and moist, as if tears were coming in. He better assure her that he just wants to talk.

"I am not going to hurt you," he said in a mellow but riled voice. "Now I am going to let go of your beak… and you have to _promise _me…. You won't scream or shout _anything._"

She continued staring at him anxiously, directly in his eyes.

"Do I make myself clear?"

She responded with a small, slow nod. Once she did, he released her and her beak, only to have her jump out of the peacock's arms and giving herself distance from him, panting for breath.

Shen was confused as to why Fan wanted to be isolated from him all of a sudden. But he found his answer when she asked him in an abhorrent tone, "Why didn't you tell me that you were a malevolent killer?"

He stopped there. He realized that he never did tell her about his past. It must've hurt her badly to find out that her rescuer was a murderous peacock.

"Look, I can explain—"

"No! No you can't!" she bit back. "You _lied _ to me!"

"Now, that's where you're wrong. I just didn't tell you." He said shallowly. He didn't, right?

"Still, I think I have the right to know if the one peacock who rescued me was a malicious killer or not!"

He didn't know what to say but tell her the truth, but he's afraid that she wouldn't like it at all if not believe it.

"Just listen!" he said. "I did die before…"

She waited for more.

"But then a turtle named Oogway came to me and gave me life again." He finished, and realized that he just said it all there and easy.

He was hoping that she would understand, but that hope was lost when he looked at her face, hostile and sarcastic.

"You were brought back to life by a… _turtle?_"

By the say she restated it, he wouldn't believe it either.

"You think I'm stupid enough to believe _that_?" she said furiously.

"No, I don't. I do admit, it does sound crazy, but you have to trust me—"

He was interrupted by Fan laughing flippantly at him before she said, "_Oh ho ho ho, yeah_! Like I should give my trust to a guy who led genocide to pandas! What kind of _sick person _are you?"

Now he's outraged. "Would you _stop _being smart alec-y and listen? You don't know what I'm going through!"

"Oh, sure, you're the only one having the most problems in the whole wide world! How sad…" she mocked.

He stepped towards her in a flash and brung his face to hers, so close that she wouldn't look anywhere else but his eyes. "I'm actually _willing _to let you live, but if you bring me to the edge, _I swear_, you'll get what's coming. Are we clear?"

Even when Fan was scared to her wits, she managed to stand her ground and glared right back at him, hissing, "Very. But I'm not letting you off the hook."

"What do you mean?"

"All those crimes. It can't be just to let you get away with it, you know."

_Damn, this chick is hard to please._ "You better watch it, female."

She spat in his eye just then, only miffing him out.

"_YOU SON OF A—"_

"You better _not _disrespect me because I am a female! Don't you dare!" she said irritatingly.

He was about to lunge at her when he remembered what he told her just a while ago: _I am not going to hurt you…_

He stopped himself before he could do something insane and gave Fan a spiteful look.

"I respected you before, Fan. Before you knew of my past." He said.

That hit her, but she kept the same bold expression at him. "That's not the case, Shen. You did horrible things in the past and you have to get what you deserve."

Shen stared at her with wide, piqued eyes and thought about it for a long, quiet and still while and finally decided on something he didn't intend to do. "I'll do _anything._"

She continued glaring at him bitterly, waiting for him to finish.

"I'll do anything you want if you keep me secret. Absolutely anything. I just _need _to keep my cover. You don't understand." He finished.

Fan looked away and thought about it, tongue-in-beak, and hummed as she thought. Shen knew that this girl is going to be specific if she agrees to let him go. She tapped her foot, only aggravating Shen more with the suspense.

Finally, she said, nodding, "Okay…"

He felt relieved until he heard her say, "Okay. I'll let you go. _But…"_

_Oh, there's always a but._

"But?"

"Given by your pleading, you seem so desperate to keep hiding at the moment." She added. "So desperate that you would do anything I would declare."

Shen wouldn't exactly call it "pleading" or "desperation", but he was willing to do something to make her keep him a secret.

"I was told by Master Shifu that you had a cunning sense in kung fu. You know, the art you were _so _looking forward to destroy—"

"Okay, I understand."

"And by the way he described your skill… it seemed like he admired it a bit… your skill."

Shen didn't know exactly where this was going.

"Yes…?"

"And Shen, it definitely looks like you've had your share of experience in kung fu; I see you have a black belt." She pointed out. "And since I'm in need of that kind of experience…. Then that's what I request from you."

Shen looked at her for three seconds, then burst out laughing, throwing his head back. Fan only looked at him with her serious look, waiting for him to finish. When he figured that he was done and saw the look on the peahen's face, he stopped immediately.

"Wait; you're serious?"

Fan gave a disappointed sigh and asked sardonically, "What does my face tell you?"

He let out a cough-like laugh and asked, "Weren't you just beating up yourself about how you can't be taught kung fu and that you're the 'Most Pathetic Warrior that all of China's ever known'? "

"Yeah, yeah, I did. But does that mean that another teacher can teach me better?"

"So let me get this clear; you want me to teach you my ways."

"I think that sums it all up, doesn't it?"

He chuckled. "Really, cai li fo is a very challenging fighting style. You won't even last a minute."

"It that another strike at me for being weak because I'm a female?" she asked.

"No, it's not. It's just that it's a very difficult style. You wouldn't want to beat yourself up again, do you?" he jeered.

"Well, how do you think you can teach compared to you and Crane?" she said.

His proud, narcissistic ego came just then and he chuckled, "Oh, that first lesson he gave you was too basic. I can definitely teach better."

"Okay, then. If you're much better at teaching kung fu that Crane is, then do it."

"So you are fixed on this decision? This is what you want to keep me a secret?"

"Yes."

Shen looked at her with sincerity and knew that she was serious. He knew that this is what she wants out of him.

"Deal?" he lifted his wing in front of her and without hesitation, she took his wing and shook it solemnly.

"Deal."

"Then how would it work?" Shen asked.

"Well, we're still a bit hazy on the details of when the classes with Crane start and end, but—"

Shen listened to her until he heard a faint rustle behind her and quickly spotted two strangers. They were skinny and were obviously snakes. One he can identify wearing a hat and the other had brown-colored skin.

Before he could let then slither away and possibly rat him out, he violently rushed where the two snakes hid and grabbed both their throats with his metal talons before Fan yelled at him to stop.

"Oh, please don't kill us!" Ke Li Si pleaded.

"Yeah! You wouldn't like our taste anyway!"

"I don't think peacocks eat meat or snake in particular." The python added to his friend.

"Well, he doesn't have to eat us, but he can kill us, and—"

"_Shut up!"_ the perturbed peacock demanded.

"Goodbye world!" Lu Ke cried out.

"Shen, let them go!" Fan begged, smacking Shen upside the head. Ke Li Si laughed a little.

"_What? You think that was funny?_" Shen asked, his eyes glowing like fire.

"No, no, no! I'm sorry!" he apologized.

"Shen, would you please let them go?" Fan said.

"Why? So they can spread the truth that I'm here?" he retorted.

"They're not doing anything! They're my friends!" Fan added. "They're here to protect me."

Shen looked at Fan then with disgust. "So you broke the promise?"

Now she's the one in trouble. "Shen, my conscience couldn't take it. They're my best friends. I can't keep it away from them!"

"But you _broke _it." He growled.

"Shen, the secret is still safe, I assure you. I told them to promise, too. Honest." Fan said.

"We certainly did." Lu Ke said.

"We took it seriously." Ke Li Si also said.

Shen took one look at the two snakes in his grasp and back at Fan. "You sure that only the three of you know?"

"Positively. No one else knows." Fan reassured. "Now will you let go of my friends?"

He loosened his grip on them and they slithered away from his metal talons.

"And for the record, they also promised that they'll be with me when you're around." Fan informed him, keeping her friends behind her.

"Why is that?" he said cynically.

"So they can keep a close eye on us and any intruders." she said. "But trust me, your secret is safe."

It took a while for the peacock to respond when he finally said, "I hope so."

Then, out of unison, Lu Ke popped out from behind Fan and said with a grin, "So if you didn't know us, I'm Lu Ke and this is Ke Li Si, just to let you know since we're—"

"I don't care." Shen said with sullen eyes and began to walk the other way to think about the compromise, leaving Fan and her friends watching him think to himself.

"Well, he's a charming guy, huh?" Lu Ke asked.

"Tell me about it." Fan rolled her eyes.


	9. Chapter 8

A little later that morning, Lu Ke left to go back to his kung fu training after Shen made him swear that he wouldn't tell anyone about his presence, which he presently promised again. Before it was Ke Li Si's turn to train, he stood with Fan to calm her down a little from everything. From the accident, from yelling at Shen, from their compromise.

Shen stood aside thinking through what may happen. _Will they be true to their word? Will they keep my secret for long? And do I _have _to teach Fan about cai li fo? I don't want to end up like that crane fellow._

His thoughts were interrupted when he heard a voice behind him.

"So, what are you staying here for?" Fan asked, right behind the peacock.

He didn't know why, so he didn't answer. He only slid out his lance from his robes and spun it, a quiet _shing_ sounding. Fan glanced at the lance with impressed eyes. _Soon, I'll be able to wield something like that._ But she thought of a better question that might make him answer.

"Why did you come?" she asked. "How did you know I was here?"

Shen spun his lance again and gave a low sigh. He looked at her in the corner of his eye, too late to look away since she was already looking at him. He shifted his neck to face her and answered, "Po told me that you were here."

Fan's eyes blinked. "Po knows that you're here?"

He nodded. "He's helping me out. He's going to teach me about inner peace… tonight."

"Is he?"

"Mmm hmm."

He turned away again.

"You still didn't answer my question." Fan said.

"Yes?"

"Why did you come to me?" she asked again softly. "Were you looking for me?"

He grew silent before he said. "How can you not know me?"

"Know you?"

"Before… when we first met in the forest… when I fixed your wing. You weren't pretending that you didn't know me." He said. "All those things you said about me. You just found out?"

She nodded. "Shifu told me."

He sighed.

"There is a reason, Shen." She added. "But it's complicated."

"Just tell me briefly."

She inhaled and said, "My city… it's not in the brightest of worlds right now, honestly. We practically live the way we did since twenty years ago. Everything's been the same. The city's been so horrific to people that no news ever came in, but news about us always came out. We're like an intimidating island. No one wants to come."

When she looked up at him, Shen was facing her directly. In her eyes, he could see concern and sadness. He knew that there was much more to the story of hers, but he didn't want to push her any further now.

"I see."

She gave a sad smile. "Now you do… a bit."

He couldn't take it. He had to know what's been her problem. He sensed it from the moment he saw her getting beaten by that fox. He sensed it when he looked into her sad brown eyes when he was healing her bruised wing. He sensed it now.

"Fan, I know that's not the whole story." He said. "There's more to it, is there?"

She looked down at his metal feet, then back to his eyes. "I don't know if I can trust you with that."

"Doesn't a teacher need trust? One step at a time."

"I'm afraid I'll be telling you a lot…"

An hour passed when Fan told Shen the whole story. She described the details of her experience, she tried to go through talking about the death of her parents without breaking down, which she barely succeeded in, and sewed the facts she found out from Si Lai into the story. Oddly for Shen, he was actually listening. He didn't know what it was that made him attentive to the peahen. Was it the way her eyes softened every time she spoke about her parents? Was it the way she cared about her city? He guessed that it was because she's in a position far worse than he is. He knew his parents died, but that was from "grief", whereas Fan's parents were murdered. Her mother counted for murder because of the starvation inflicted on her, and he would think of it horrible for a best friend to murder her father, even though he's never had a best friend before. Wolf Boss was like his pet in a way, but Fan's matter is different. It surprised him hearing the fact that the fox was her best friend long before everything began.

But what really made him concerned was the small story she told when she had amnesia. He couldn't imagine how he would be in that position. For a moment, she couldn't recognize her family friend or herself. But she proved that she can be strong, and Shen felt a small twinge of relief that she remembered by the time the story was finished.

"So, yeah, that's the whole story…" Fan concluded, frowning into the sunrise as she spoke softly. Shen felt a slight shudder hearing her sad voice for some reason. "I'm sorry it's not what you came to hear. I know, it's too gloomy a story, and…"

"No, it's…" Shen said, then stopped, looking for words that he thought he would never express at all with a voice he thought he'd never come out with. "It's fine, Fan. I… I had no idea."

"I know what you're thinking." She replied, her eyes still set to the sun. "Poor peahen, huh?"

"Not at all." He said, afterward thinking to himself, _What the hell did I just say?_

"It is hard. Very." She said.

"It must be with you working on your own."

Fan's brows then lowered into a thoughtful look as she glanced down her trance with the sun disappearing when she faced Shen. He gave caution to her face that he probably said something wrong.

"No," she said. "I wasn't on my own. At least not entirely."

Shen stood, waiting for more she has to say.

"I have my friends. My family. My daughter." She said. When she mentioned her daughter, Shen felt inside him disappointment. _She has a husband?_

"Ah," was all he said.

Fan identified his expression; misunderstood, mad and confused. She knew she wasn't the only one with major problems. "What about you?"

"What about me?" he asked silently.

"You have problems?"

He knows that she can see it in his eyes, but for some reason, the words couldn't come out of his mouth. He just stood where he was, next to Fan and looking into her chocolate-brown eyes, curious and sincere.

"Not like yours." Was all he said.

Fan was disappointed then. She came open to him and he wouldn't do the same back. Then again, she thought it was odd that she told him her story, something she would do to someone she'd trust. At least that was something, but it startled her that she was open to a killer. She had to make boundaries not to reveal anything more about her.

"Okay, Shen." She said. "You don't have to tell me. But if you want to tell, I'm here as your student."

Shen looked to the sun and nodded slowly. Fan took that as a sign to leave. He seemed to want some time alone now.

"Goodbye, Shen." She said as she started walking off to the Jade Palace.

It took her a moment to do so, but before she disappeared into the bushes, she took one small glance behind her to see the albino peacock look into the distance. She didn't know why she felt sympathy.

Fan returned to the barracks, ready to hear accusations of injuring Crane, but instead, she got kind greetings from everyone she passed, as if nothing ever happened at all. She found herself puzzled, but she would rather be confused than embarrassed for the past moment earlier that day.

Breakfast passed, and she didn't inspect any sigh of Crane anywhere. She started to feel so nervous that she couldn't finish all her food, afraid and sick that Crane's injury is far worse than she thought. Now she felt even worse at lunch when she still didn't see Crane with Po and the Five.

Right after the meal time was done, everyone was to resume to training, but Fan stopped Viper and Ke Li Si before they could go anywhere.

"Viper!" she called as she ran in front of her. "Viper, I'm just curious; where's Crane?"

Viper frowned. "Oh… he got into quite an accident."

Fan's heart sank. "Oh…"

"Poor guy."

She felt worse. "Oooohh… jeez."

"Yeah, we should really be careful with nunchucks."

"Ohh—what?" Fan asked, confused. _Nunchucks?_

"Yeah," Viper said. "Crane said he was teaching you how to wield nunchucks and he accidently hit himself with them."

Fan couldn't believe it. Ke Li Si made a surprised face, too. Crane covered for her so she wouldn't be humiliated. She felt touched and relief spread through her as if the weight of the world disappeared.

"Oh, yeah," Fan improvised. "It must be very hard for him. How's he doing? Is he okay?"

"Oh, yes, definitely. He's coming out fine; I wouldn't worry about it. But he said that he'll start teaching you in two days. Some injuries take time to heal." Viper explained sweetly.

With the news, Fan felt much better. She still couldn't believe that Crane vouched for her. As soon as she sees him again, she'll pounce on him and thank him a thousand times. She smiled.

"Oh, okay, thank you, Viper." She replied.

"You're very welcome." She smiled, and then turned to the python next to her. "Now, let's go, Ke Li Si. We've got some work to do."

Ke Li Si groaned after seeing Lu Ke's condition after his training ended today. He was slithering slowly and steadily, gasping for breath.

"Okay," the python said shyly and slithered along with Viper to their training hall.

Fan went over to her room to take a bit of a breather about all that's happened today. As soon as she stepped into the barracks, she sighed a long sigh and walked to her room. She really wanted to take a nap to clear her mind for a while and she did, but for only half an hour until Lu Ke invaded her quiet time.

"Fan." He said.

She moaned. "Yes, Lu Ke?"

"It's Xin Chai. He came to bring you something." He said.

That hummingbird was always hyper and quick with things. Fan then knew that someone had written to her recently. "Oh, really? Where is he?"

"He's outside. I told him that I'd get you." He said calmly. "You coming?"

"Yes, of course," she replied.

When she went outside, the crazed hummingbird was already in her face. "HELLO, FAN! GOOD—NO, GREAT TO SEE YOU AGAIN! I THOUGHT THAT IT WOULD TAKE A WHILE TO SEE MISS FAN NI SHA AGAIN, BUT HERE I AM! I JUST TOOK SOME NECTAR FROM CHERRY BLOSSOMS AND THEY WERE MMMM MMM GOOOOOOD! LET ME TELL YA—"he went on hysterically.

"Xin, honey, slow down." Fan soothed. "You need to cut back on nectar, seriously."

"MY DOCTOR TELLS ME THAT EVERY TIME, BUT I NEVER LISTEN! WHY DON'T I LISTEN? I HAVE A LOW ATTENTION SPAN AND—"

"Whoa, watch yourself." Fan soothed again.

"OH, AND I GOT THIS FOR YOU!" he said exuberantly as he handed the peahen a tiny scroll. "IT'S FROM QIU QIU!"

Fan identified the scroll before saying, "Thank you very much Xin; I really appreciate your services."

"YOU'RE VERY WELCOME, FAN!" he said cheerfully before fluttering back in the direction to the Forest of Prosperity.

She's thought of her city in a while, and she's curious to see how it's been doing with Qiu Qiu taken charge. She hoped that positive things would come out.

Lu Ke looked at the scroll behind her and said, "Wonder what it says?"

"Yeah, let's go inside, Lu Ke." Fan said.

They walked inside Fan's room, the warm afternoon sunlight playing over the wooden structure through the paper walls. They both sat in the middle of the wooden floor before Fan started untying the thin string holding the paper. After she did, she uncurled the piece of paper and read the following words.

_Hello, Fan,_

_How've you been doing lately? How are Lu Ke and Ke Li Si? Are they in great shape already? Don't tell them I asked that. Tell me how Mi Lao's doing if you reply._

_Well, to ease your worries, the city's been patient and calm so far, so there's nothing to be upset over at this time. I made it clear to all of them that you're doing this for their own good and I made sure that they got the message. So guess what? Most of them finally teamed up together to show their support for you and they started a bit of construction on the small buildings. Like I always say, little things can make a change. But unfortunately, we don't have enough funds to rebuild your family palace. Your parents would've wanted that for you so much. But each little baby step will come out great in the end._

_I hope you feel better after this and remember, if you need any paternal support, I'm here for you, sweetie._

_Your weird uncle,_

_Qiu Qiu_

_PS, What happened to the tree house?_

"Wow," was all Fan could say. "Why didn't I hire Qiu Qiu before?"

"Well, he's always got that charm." Lu Ke smiled.

Fan nodded before she took a small brush from her small bag and a piece of paper from Lu Ke's stash.

"You're going to write back to him?"

"Of course I am. I can't let him worry." She replied, and then started on her work, trying to make every little stroke of Chinese calligraphy with precision, for she was a perfectionist. People often called her an artist, but she thought otherwise. She could only do very good calligraphy and pen and ink flowers, but nothing else beyond that. She used her talents as her past time hobby and her flower portraits were made to honor her parents forever. She would give them away to her citizens to remind them of their great rulers and she kept some of them to herself to remember her heritage and bloodline, but unfortunately, the fire from the tree house ate them up.

She wrote,

_Dear Uncle Qiu Qiu,_

_Things have been going… satisfactory around here. It's not too bad honestly. I'm just having a little bit of a few issues, but I think I can overcome them soon._

_Lu Ke and Ke Li Si are very much well here and so far, they're enjoying their stay because of a certain master around here—_

"Hey! Don't write that!" Lu Ke pleaded, blushing red.

"Too late, buddy. I'm not wasting my black ink." Fan joked.

She then continued on,

_Mi Lao definitely loves this place to the bottom of her little heart and she is doing very well. We haven't talked much to each other yet, but when we come back, you'll see a whole new transition with us. I'll do anything to restore my bond with my daughter._

_Anyway, to cut to the chase, I really appreciate to helping me out now. It really means a lot to me and mom and dad would be very proud of you. I already am. You actually made my day because a lot has happened the past few days after we left the forest._

_Seriously, I have to let you in on something: I saw Si Lai again. She was the one who tore down the tree house. I went to get back my bracelet, but she surprised me. Believe me; I thought I was dead for sure, but then—_

Fan paused her writing there, thinking how she was going to describe the events after.

"Are you going to tell him?" Lu Ke asked, his beady eyes searching for an answer in Fan's.

Fan thought for a minute before saying softly, "I'm sorry, uncle."

_I managed to get away, so don't worry about me; I'm safe._

_Well, that's about as much I can get out of my head right now._

_Try to write back soon._

_Your niece,_

_Fannie_

Lu Ke laughed after Fan finished. "What's so funny?"

"Your nickname." He replied, trying to stifle his giggles.

"Hey, it's cute if you don't think about it." She said. Qiu Qiu would always call her that whenever she needed to raise her spirits. But even still, she requests him to call her by her name because she believes that she's too old to be called that. However, she appreciated the name now. "Now the question is where to send this."

A little while later, Fan consulted Shifu about sending her message and he told her to check with Zeng. She quickly recognized the small goose after being given a description of his physical appearance and after an awkward conversation with the shaken goose, he cooperatively left to send Fan's message back to her city… her home. _I miss it there_.

She missed the few fond memories of her city. Before the raids, when she was younger, she did travel here and there, but they would only stay at one place for less than a day and then come back home. But she didn't take that hard. She loved being at home playing with her Uncle Qiu Qiu and when she used to go to frequent trips to the dance hall. _Oh, that dance hall… _

As a young peahen, she loved to dance. She loved to move her body in a smooth rhythm and the flowers, she thought, would dance with her in the cool spring winds. She remembered every year, she would choreograph and perform a special dance for the return of spring, embracing it with her heart and soul. Her parents knew well that she would be a great ruler when she takes the reins, but she never thought so at this point.

Her parents told her of a long prophecy that was passed many generations from her ancestors that the one heir who possesses the colors of the sacred fan ni sha flower would reign over her city more successful than those before her, even her parents. When she heard this, she thought she was not cut out for it and that the prophecy was just a story they made up for her.

"_It is true, Fan._" She remembered her mother say to her. "_When you dance, the flowers dance with you. When you feel sad, the flowers cling to you. You bear the colors of the fan ni sha flower; which is why you have your name._"

"_I know that, mom, but,_" young Fan said, clinging for words. "_But what if it's a coincidence?_"

"_It's no coincidence. I know you'll have a great life when you're older._" And she gave a peck to her daughter's forehead.

_Yeah, look at me now. I'm past being an adult and I have a _great_ life, indeed._ She thought. Besides, it's not like it matters anyway; the fan ni sha flower, the blossom that she was named after for its exact translucent blue and green colors, is already wiped out. _All thanks to Kuang._

"Fan, are you okay?" Lu Ke asked.

Her memories of her horrible past marriage interrupted with her friend's voice and she turned on back to reality. She looked down to see a few tiny flowers clinging to her, but they let go of her slender feet as if they were embarrassed for trying to cheer her up. Fan convinced herself that it was just the wind doing that. "Y-yes. I'm fine. I'm just a bit homesick, that's all."

"You miss it?" he asked.

"Yep…" she sighed. "Lu Ke, do you think I can rule my city better than my parents?"

Lu Ke looked at her with friendly solemn eyes and replied, "Who knows that better than you? Besides, I think that things can be better in the end. Why do you ask?"

Fan stared at the flowers that clung to her, listening to the viper.

"Well, my faith… it's… it's just seems like it's failing."

"Failing?"

"Yes. I mean, what if this won't solve the problem? What if I don't succeed in bringing my city back before I die someday?"

"You will, Fan. Remember the prophecy?"

"I was just thinking about it right now. But with the city's condition… I don't know."

Lu Ke raised his tail around Fan's shoulders and smiled warmly at her.

"Just hang on tighter, Fan. Ke Li Si, Qiu Qiu; your parents. We all have faith in you. You just have to do the same." He said.

Fan didn't say anything, but responded with a calm smile and nodded.

"I'll try."

"Mom! Mom!" Mi Lao called out when her mother walked into the dining room. She was holding tightly to Po's paw, dragging him towards Fan. She widened her eyes at the sight of the huge panda and her little kitten. They were both filthy and stained with what Fan hoped was mud.

"Mom! I had _so _much fun with Tigress! I learned a lot!"

"I, ah," Fan replied, trying to look for her daughter's face beneath the thick coat of mud. She almost burst out laughing at her ball of fluff. "I see that, baby."

"And after that, I went to play with Po and we made mud pies, but then we had a mud fight after and it was _wild_!" she exclaimed.

Po blushed while facing Fan. "I'm so sorry. Things got a little carried away and we just had a lot of fun. Your daughter—"

Fan waved her wing, halting his apologies. "Po, honey, it's perfectly fine, really." She smiled. "I don't mind. I'm glad that my little girl had fun."

Po laughed nervously.

Then Fan looked seriously at her daughter and craned her neck down to meet her green eyes. Mi Lao didn't like what was about to happen next.

"But _surely _you should know what happens when you get dirty, Mimi."

Mi Lao feared the worst when she heard her mother call her by that nickname, which she used when she was mad at her or other.

Mi Lao gulped down a lump in her throat and asked faintly, "Bath…?"

Her mother nodded, her eyes not leaving her daughter's. "Bath."

"NOOOOOOO!" the kitten shrieked. She was grabbing hold of the wood of their room's doorframe, sinking her claws into it and yelping for mercy while Fan was grasping and pulling her daughter's feet in the room, where a wooden tub of water was waiting. "_You can't take me aliiive_!"

"You want me to take you dead?" Fan yelled, knowing that Mi Lao would take it as a joke, and strained as she pulled harder.

"Why? _Why? Why must you torment me this waaaay?_" Mi Lao whelped.

"It's for your own good, Mimi!" Fan grunted as she continued pulling. "Just get in here and get it over with!"

"_Nooooo!_" the cat wailed horribly. "_I'm not getting in that horrible water! You can't make me!_"

"Then I'll tell to not give you lessons for a week!"

Mi Lao gasped and looked over her shoulder, still grasping on the frame. "You _wouldn't_!"

"Try me."

"_I'm not going in!_"

Tigress walked in jus then and spied on the two, lifting an eyebrow at the peculiar situation. "Bath trouble?"

"Yeah," Fan said, saying it as if it were an everyday thing. "It's a predicament."

Tigress crouched down and said to Mi Lao, "Come, Mi Lao. You shouldn't be afraid of baths."

"That's easy for you to say!" Mi Lao gasped. "You're a _TigerI_"

Tigress's bright orange eyes lifted to meet Fan's and said, "Need a little help?"

"Oh, Tigress, that would be so thoughtful of you, thanks." Fan said, already feeling a few beads of sweat flowing down her bangs and face.

Mi Lao was horrified at this. "_What? Tigress? You betrayed me! How can you do this to me?"_

"I'm sorry, squirt, but I don't want my student to look like a hobo." Tigress explained as she stepped in and grabbed onto Mi Lao's feet after Fan let go of them. She was confident that Tigress would bring in her daughter more efficiently than her. "Now, let go, or I have to pull you in."

"_Never!_" Mi Lao gripped tighter.

"Suit yourself." The tiger said before she pulled Mi Lao's feel with all her incredible strength. Fan could hear the wood ripping below Mi Lao's ferocious claws as she screamed in a horrifically high pitch. Then at last, her claws came loose and she was flung backwards and perfectly landed in the small tub in a splash. Fan responded to the event and quickly darted to her daughter's side, making sure she doesn't escape.

The kitten was squirming and screaming, gasping and panting as more water touched her skin. Even through this torture, she didn't dare strike at her mother. Her dark brown fur was damp, making her look skinny with the sogginess. Tigress rushed beside Fan to help her out.

"Get the soap. It's somewhere on the floor next to this tub." Fan said pleadingly, her wings pushing Mi Lao into the water to prevent any escape routes.

Tigress obeyed and looked around the wooden floor until she saw a small pink bar. She picked it up and handed it to Fan. "Here."

Fan grabbed the bar and carefully scrubbed her daughter down as she continued to move about crazily and Tigress helped. She lathered the kitten up and a million suds formed on her dark brown little head. Fan then stripped Mi Lao off her clothes to make the cleaning go easier and when that was done, she continued lathering the fur.

Mi Lao soon gave up, but her teeth clattered. Not from the water—it was warm, but the fact that she was _in _water made her strained to stay in longer.

"You're doing good, baby." Fan said as she rinsed Mi Lao off with more water. "You're doing very good."

"Can you finish faster?" Mi Lao shuddered.

"Of course. You're almost done. You'll look _very _beautiful."

Mi Lao blushed when she looked at Tigress, hiding beneath the suds to cover herself.

"Don't worry, Mi Lao. We're all girls here." Tigress reassured. That made the blushing kitten feel a bit better.

Fan finished cleaning Mi Lao and she walked over to Mi Lao's bag to find her little towel. After she found it, she told Mi Lao to leave the tub and wrapped the towel around the soggy kitten.

"Is that all you need, Fan?" Tigress asked.

"Oh, no, that is all. Thank you so very much for helping." Fan thanked.

"You're welcome," she said. "Now you might want to hurry; Po may be done with dinner very soon."

"We'll be ready."

After Tigress left, Fan released Mi Lao from holding the towel and dried her thick, damp fur. It took her five minutes until Mi Lao looked like a little fuzzball. Fan confirmed that she's dried completely. Fan took Mi Lao's brush from her bag and began to brush down her soft and silky fur. Now and then, Fan would stroke her kitten's fur delicately, loving her daughter immensely. She was glad that she had the opportunity to give her a bath tonight. Usually she'd be off helping the community and appointed Qiu Qiu to help give Mi Lao a bath. She now regretted not having to do so before, but shook the regretfulness aside and smiled as she continued brushing her beloved daughter's fur.

Fan gave her daughter her clean clothes from her bag when a familiar friend showed up tumbling out the bag. It was a stuffed animal Mi Lao owned since she was a tiny baby kitten.

Mi Lao snatched up the doll the moment her eyes set on it and cradled it in her arms, remembering when she used to play with her childhood friend, her only friend.

"Lily," she whispered. "You packed her?"

Fan thought that she would be disgusted by the doll, complaining that she's too old for dolls, but she was touched seeing her with Lily.

"Of course I did. I thought you needed your friend with you."

Mi Lao touched the soft fabric of Lily's pink fur, recognizing the purple patch on her eye. She used to take her anywhere and she loved that doll like any little girl would.

"I'm gonna bring her with me again." She said, clutching at the softness of the doll close to her cheek. Fan helped her change into her comfortable clothes and walked out the barracks to the dining room.

Everyone was there except Crane and Po. Monkey, Mantis, Viper and Tigress sat with their guests Ke Li Si and Lu Ke, eating hot, fresh noodle soup. The aroma filled Fan's nostrils as she inhaled the delicious scent. She brought Mi Lao to the table and set her on her chair. Tigress looked at Mi Lao and her little friend. The others noticed as well.

"Hey, Mi Lao." Tigress said nicely. "Is that your friend?"

Mi Lao smiled as she took a look at her doll's thick eyes. "Uh huh. Her name's Lily."

"Lily?" Tigress repeated. "That's a pretty name for your doll."

"Thank you." She said modestly, looking at Tigress and knowing for a fact that she is her friend. Her first friend that is her own kind. "I made her. Mom helped out a little, and it was hard for her."

"Why is that?"

"Her skinny feathers got in the way." The kitten giggled. She looked to her side and spotted her mother giving her a "You're gonna get it soon." look. She immediately stopped laughing and proceeded staring at her doll. Fan brushed her wing on her shoulder to reassure her no trouble and asked Tigress, "So how was my daughter today?"

"Oh, she was very good." She said. "She had hardly any flaw. She could be trained faster than I thought, even for her age. How old is she?"

"Six," Fan answered. "She should be taller. I never knew what breed she is, but I know that something just makes her so small."

"Fan, trust me," Tigress said proudly. "When Mi Lao is older, she will surpass you in height. She may be small now, but," she looked at the kitten playing with her doll tenderly. "… She will be a strong toughie."

Fan smiled. She was glad that her daughter is already having a great mentor on her first day. She has overall confidence that Tigress will teach her the right ways.

"_Dude, you don't have to. You need to rest." _Po's familiar voice said in the hall outside the dining room. Fan listened curiously as to what was going on.

"_No, Po. It's alright. I'm okay. I can handle this."_

"_You sure?_"

"_Positive. It's not a big deal…"_

Fan 's eyebrows came together in confusion at who Po was talking to, until she saw Crane come into the kitchen with a mild limp as he walked, Po walking behind him. All of a sudden, Fan's heart beat exceedingly fast in fear and her cheeks flushed in embarrassment. She turned her head to not look directly at Crane, pretending as if she didn't notice him cross the room.

"Oh, Crane, are you okay?" everyone asked around, except Mantis, waiting impatiently for the food to be ready.

"I'm fine, guys, really." He said calmly and sweetly. "It's nothing serious. I'll be okay very soon."

Fan had a feeling that her acting oblivious to her mentor's presence would not last long and he would sooner or later approach her. Of course he would notice her acting this way, but she proceeded looking away.

Then she heard footsteps coming closer to her. "Fan,"

She hesitated for a moment, but gave in and turned her head to face Crane. Her heart beat faster. He wasn't mad at her. He was smiling at her. _But why?_

"Can I talk to you in the hall, please?" he said, the sound of his tone of voice sounding warm and reassuring that that made Fan feel like she has nothing to worry about.

She nodded slowly. Crane leaded her out of the dining room, leaving Mi Lao with her doll Lily. She followed him to the next room, which was the pantry room. It was rather dark in there, but the moonlight provided a bit of luminance to the room.

Crane closed the door a tiny bit, but left it a bit open so no one would be suspicious. Fan guess that this would take a few minutes. He turned and faced her.

"Fan," he began. "I knew that you were very upset after… you know…"

Fan didn't say anything. There was nothing to say. She apologized to him many times and if she did again, it would be useless anyway. She listened.

"But anyway, Fan, I'm fine, and that's all that matters." He proceeded. "But please, Fan, don't beat yourself up about it. I know that probably my wails of pain made it harder for you to calm down with, but now, it's all good. I'm not mad at you Fan."

_Not mad? He's not mad at me? _She never knew that Crane could be so generous, so thoughtful, and so kind. He reminded her of her father. _Father… Daddy… _ She remembered how their relationship used to be. Trusting, loving, fun; especially with those tickle fights they used to engage in. Father would always win against her. But even so, her father was pretty hard on her, restricting her to go anywhere alone without someone present to watch out for her. She would be a little rebellious, but she would never go off the deep end. She remembered that her father would tell her after that he was being strict on her because he loves her so much. Of course, with her hearing that at a young age, she used to think it was something fluffy that parents say to make their kids obey, but now, she understood her father. She could have messed herself up, taking advantage of her royalty and destroy herself and her dignity to her family. She thanked her father from letting his daughter go through emotional dilemmas and denial. _Kuang was taught the opposite. I'm glad I'm not him._

She focused back on Crane, seeing his caring warm amber eyes at her, as if he was more concerned to what she was thinking. She thought of him as a great friend.

She looked at him with pleading brown eyes. "Not even a bit?" she asked faintly.

Crane shook his head with a smile. "Nope. Not even a bit. I know that it's an accident. I can't and won't hold a grudge on that."

Fan smiled at him, this time with real happiness. For the first time, she felt that she maybe overreacted and this was a huge misunderstanding. She should thank him for that.

"And by the way, that was a really strong kick. If it hadn't been me but someone else, you would've beat them down with that heck of a kick."

Fan laughed. "Yeah, thank you."

"Just try to keep your distance next time." Crane winked. That made Fan giggle in a high pitched tone that startled him.

Fan looked at his odd look at her and she took her small purple fan from the pocket of her shorts and blushed behind her waving Fan. She couldn't remember when she last giggled like that. "Sorry, that was a bit too much."

She put away her fan and after a short awkward silence, Fan cleared her throat and asked, "So, we're going to start again in two days?"

"Yeah. My best bet is that I'll be probably okay by tomorrow, but I just want to make sure by the day after to be careful. You know, for the damage to wear off…" Crane explained.

"Yeah, you need to be sure that you're okay. I'm fine with waiting a day." Fan nodded with a smile of assurance.

"You sure?"

"I am sure. Besides, I like walking around here. It's very beautiful."

"It really is. Different from your home, huh?"

"Definitely. I just like thinking around here, but at home… that's where I belong."

"I'd like to visit sometime."

"Ehh…" Fan grumbled. "That'll take some time to… fulfill."

"Well, anyway," Crane said. "Don't put yourself down. You're doing this for your community, remember? Think of them when you do this. Think of your friends. Think of Mi Lao. She's sitting over there with the rest of us. We'll help you and your family."

Fan thought about all of them, sitting around like one huge family. "Thank you for telling me this, Crane. It means so much to me."

"You're very welcome." Crane said, patting his wing over Fan's shoulder.

Fan smelled something delicious in the air then. It was a salty and eggy smell that made her stomach grumble. Crane responded by sniffing the air.

"Well, we might need to go to the dining room now. Smells like Po is whipping up something _mighty _scrumptious now!" Crane said, licking his beak.

"Yes, my stomach is going nuts since lunch. I wonder what's cooking."

Fan and Crane came into the dining room and in front of everyone were bowls of noodle soup and some bean buns. But on Fan's part of the table, there was a bowl of hot, steaming and delicious-looking chow mein calling to her.

"Mmmm! Yess!" Fan exclaimed as she ran over to her bowl. "I could eat chow mein all day, guys."

Po came in with eggrolls and set them on the table. "Well, what are you waiting for? Dig in!"

Fan finished all her chow mein and asked for a second round right after. Mi Lao didn't finish half of her noodle soup, having her mother lecture her about her health and that many poor children would love to have her remains, so she continued eating and finished with a pout. Fan and Crane exchanged smiles now and then as everyone talked about their day.

Fan also entertained herself by watching Lu Ke and Ke Li Si's reactions when Viper would talk about them to everyone or whenever she would talk to them directly. They would blush madly like they always do or babble uncontrollably. Fan would giggle at her funny friends.

After dinner, everyone left except Viper and Crane, who volunteered to help to clean up the table.

"So, Viper, I see you have not only one, but _two _admirers." Crane winked as he wiped the tabletop.

"Oh, Crane, stop it." Viper rolled her eyes jokingly. "I'm not even interested. But… I know some people who may be interested in them."

"You mean…?"

Viper nodded, grinning slyly.

"You think they'll do it?"

"I know they will. They're bachelorettes and I know that these guys'll just make them crazy. They're into the shy types. They should thank me for this."

"I bet they will. What is your type, anyway?"

"Very tough. Someone who wouldn't look down me just because I'm a female. I get tired of that 'small and delicate' junk about me. I can release the fury." She said, baring her fangs.

"Well, then I hope Lu Ke and Ke Li Si'll like them back."

"Trust me, once they see Ming and Chel, they will have a number one goal: impress them with skill."

Fan, Mi Lao and her friends went over to the student barracks, the sky blanketed by a sea of stars, twinkling bright and beautifully casting a luminous light on them. Fan sighed at the sight.

They all walked in and as soon as Lu Ke and Ke Li Si said good night to Fan and her daughter, they drifted off into a peaceful slumber. Fan chuckled to herself. She led a yawning Mi Lao to their room, her eyes heavy and desperate for sleep. Fan became Mi Lao's eyes, her tips of her wing feathers on her daughter's shoulders to lead her to the right direction. When they made it, Mi Lao couldn't stand to stand or walk any longer and lazily threw herself backwards. Fan caught her in time and let out a small giggle. _Silly Mi Lao…_

"Come on, baby. You just need to change, alright?" Fan said soothingly.

But Mi Lao moaned, rubbing her closed eyes with her paws. "I don't need my PJ's."

"And let you sleep uncomfortably? No, no, no, sweetheart." Fan tisked as she slid over to Mi Lao's bag and pulled out her pajamas, pink-colored and with tiny paw prints on it.

Fan stripped her daughter of her day clothes and placed on her night clothes in replacement. When she took a look at her, she thought Mi Lao never looked so adorable. Her raggedy long sleeves were sagging, as if she had no arms and her pants were a bit tall as well, the legs loose almost looking like clown shoes. She looked fuzzy and chubby with the pajamas, and with the addition of her sleepy expression, Fan thought she'd die of cuteness. But she didn't want to torment her sleepy daughter into standing any more and she gathered her in her wings and placed her in her little hammock. Like as if she were a baby kitten again, Fan made the hammock swing softly to and from with a small push and grabbed Mi Lao's soft blankets that she left on the floor that morning and spread them carefully on her drowsy daughter.

"Mom?" the kitten mewed.

"Yes, sweetie?" Fan asked as she stroked the fur on Mi Lao's soft forehead. She always thought that it felt like down; incredibly soft and lightly felt.

"I don't feel that sleepy yet…" she interrupted herself with an unexpected yawn. "Can you tell me a story?"

Fan felt butterflies in her stomach when she heard her daughter's request. This… this was a real moment for them. She knows for a fact that their relationship will be mended, she knows that this whole problem will be fixed with the love of her daughter. Without her, she's nothing. But when she's by her side, she feels she can overcome any obstacle. This was her chance to make things right and smiled.

"Which story do you want, baby?"

"Any will be okay." Mi Lao said as she pulled the blankets so close to her that only her head was exposed. "Although, I'd like the one about the gator and the mouse."

Fan knows that story by heart. She remembered making it up for Mi Lao when she was a baby to have her stop crying and it soon became her favorite story. She never grew out of it. She recalled her baby Mi Lao giggling hysterically and fall backwards when she did the "gator" sound, which was a very gruff roar.

"Okay, then." Fan said as she gathered what she remembered about the story. "Once, there was a huge alligator. He was as big as a house!" she said with her animated voice. "He was mean and nasty and he didn't have friends because of that. He would go around and steal so much food from villages around and he didn't care _one _bit about how the people felt! No, he didn't."

She spied a smile from her kitten's face, her eyes drooping a bit.

"But then, he found a small home and he looked at how these creatures lived, for they were new townsfolk and they lived in a tiny hole beneath the roots of a tree. He saw how they saved their food and he also saw where they put it and he was so happy, a huge grin spread over his scaly face! He soon came back when the mice people weren't there, and he took all of the food right out of it! He ate the food and let a loud _rooooaaar!_"

Mi Lao giggled, the sound of it akin to sugary syrup. Her heart warmed to the jovial sound.

"And not much later, the mice came back after hearing the gator and they were devastated at what they saw. There was nothing left for them. The family went on their knees and grew sad. The youngest of the family wept the most. And when the gator heard the cries of the baby mouse, he felt guilty at what he did. He ran to his home and gathered as much food he can find that he planned to store for later. He brought that food and gave it to the mice. They were very grateful for the gator's generosity and they forgave him… and they became friends. "

"Mom," Mi Lao interrupted. "Why did he feel guilty? Why didn't he see what he's done until now?"

Fan thought about it and realized that that question could be on the subject of Shen, too. Could he feel guilty now, too, and he would do anything to fix it, like what happens in the climax of her story? Perhaps… she had treated him pretty bad before, accusing him of many things that she didn't even know were really true. Maybe it was something personal for him. She knows that if he were completely insane, he would've killed her. He would've left her to die with Si Lai without a hint of sympathy. _Sympathy… a past murderer had sympathy for me… Maybe there can be some good in him_. she thought. How can someone save a person's life and take away another's right after? Everyone has bad times, and it was obvious that Shen had his own share of heartbreaking tales.

"Well," she began. "He… he didn't see how it impacted others. He didn't see that what he did made others feel sad and terrible. He was all alone and he… didn't know how to make friends. It was like he was against the world until he saw… he saw how bad it was when he put himself in their shoes… or feet."

"I like the gator." Mi Lao said, then yawned, and continued, "I like how he turned good in the end."

Fan took that to mind. Now realizing that Shen may be committed to his desire to change, she did feel glad that he was willing to change himself for the better. Instead of looking to his past, she should've looked at his sort-of-soft side, the side that was partly guilty for what he did and that is desperate not to be this bad person anymore.

"I liked that, too."

Mi Lao then let out another long yawn, and Fan knew that her kitten should go on to sleep. "Well, thank you, mom. For the story."

"You're welcome, baby." Fan said softly as she gave a small peck on her daughter's forehead. Mi Lao curled into a ball underneath the blankets and covers and purred as she closed her gold-green eyes. Fan stood next to her and lifted one leg to sleep in her odd sleeping position. Before closing her eyes, she looked up and said, "I love you, Mi Lao."

There was nothing heard in the silence after that and Fan guessed that Mi Lao was deep asleep already, or at least she hoped she was. Still, her heart sank, thinking that possibly, she ignored her and laid there in silence. Fan buried her head beneath her wing and closed her eyes, re-envisioning the events that have happened today. The accident, her rambling, making the deal with Shen, hearing the news about her city and so forth. She didn't know whether to feel excited or worried for coming here, but she leaned toward the hope that this will work. _Keep your head up, Fan. You can overcome anything._

Five minutes passed while she mused everything and she grew tired and drowsy, her eyes were feeling heavy. But the next words that came into the air, putting a smile on her face when her eyes finally closed.

"_I love you, too, Mom._"


	10. Chapter 9

Shen was lying in his small den, trying to patiently wait for Po to come so he could learn about this inner peace, but it has been tedious for two hours after Po had given him his dinner. He tried to entertain himself by grooming, and he tried to evade from any particle of dust touching his feathers. _This is so boring._

He tried other ways to make waiting progress if not the least bit exciting. He played with his lance once or twice. He fixed any dents on the metal plating of his talons. He got up and did a small workout of doing cai li fo by himself, which was what he did before lying in a ball now.

He sighed to himself. _When is that panda coming?_ He narrowed his eyes in disappointment.

He examined himself, seeing that he's still clean, but still groomed for no reason anyway. _I have to look best for my inner peace lesson._ He thought, being a perfectionist. He felt uncomfortable being in one lying position and was dying to move. Since there was nothing to do, he stubbornly turned to one side, but he leaned on something hard and jerked to his feet at the sudden touch. He glanced at where he laid and saw nothing at all. _What the heck pierces me?_

He looked if anything was stuck to him that he probably sat on, but he found nothing on him or his robes. He heard a clicking sound as he continued moving about searching himself. He sought where the sound came from, finding out that it was beneath his robes.

He dug his wing inside his robes where the clothing touched his chest and found something on his side. He caught it and took it out. It was a blue and green bracelet. He remembered holding it after setting an uncautious Fan down two nights ago. He examined it.

The decorating beads were only simple pebbles that were possibly found in a stream, smooth and round, and they were painted a bright and calm blue and light sea green colors. They were arranged in a pattern: blue, green, blue, green, blue…

He found three Chinese symbols that represent his soon-to-be-student's name, Fan Ni Sha. He already knew before that Fan possessed this bracelet, but cursed himself now that in the two times that he was with her already; he forgot to give it to her.

_I'll give it to her next time._ He vowed. _If I forget again, I will pluck one of my train feathers out._ He cringed at the mental vow. _I better remember next time…_

He took another look at the bracelet. For some reason, he cradles the small piece of jewelry carefully, as if it were valuable jade or a beautiful diamond, yet it was made of only painted stream pebbles laced together with a simple string. He stroked the pebbles with his feather and saw no indication of wear. The paint was clean and permanent and strong.

"Hey, Shen." The panda's voice broke through just then, like a calm pool of water being splashed by an interrupting intruder. The peacock shoved the bracelet back inside his robes before the panda would notice.

"_Panda!_" he bit, hoping that he's not blushing the slightest bit. "I waited a long time! What took you so long?"

"Look Shen, chill," Po said in a quiet voice. "And quiet down, too. You can wake up China with that loud mouth of yours."

"But—!"

"_Low voice!_"

Shen stared at the panda before the tips of his mouth curved into a feigning grin. "Right; _low voice_." Then returned to his aggravated expression, whispering loudly, "_What took you so long?_"

"I was a little busy, but better late than never, right?"

"I don't have time for your cheesy fortune cookie philosophies. Are you going to teach me or not?" Shen said annoyingly.

"Of course I am. But here's not the place." Po said.

"Then _where _will you teach me?"

"We're going to hike."

Shen's eyes widened at the word. "_Hike?_"

"Yes, haven't you been hiking before?"

"I can't say I have," the peacock growled. "But why can't I fly?"

"Because then you'd have to take me with you."

"Take _you? Certainly not!_" he said, shutting his eyes stubbornly. "There was no way he's hauling up 500 pounds of panda fat.

"Then we're walking."

Shen shot his laser eyes dumbfoundingly at the panda, already leading the way to the training location. He figured if he acted even more stubborn, he would get what he wants, so he stood where he laid, closing his eyes again with a humph. A couple seconds later, he looked behind him and the panda walked even further. He filled his cheeks with air and exhaled the air out. _The panda will notice me still here. He'll give up._ He looked away again, acting superior on his ground. He took one last quick glance behind him and saw the panda already gone.

His eyes widened and he groaned. He ran in the direction he saw the panda was going and looked all around. His surroundings were dark and gloomy; the trees painted moonlight blue, drying fall leaves jade blue-green in the monochromatic blue forest. He started to panic and gasped as he looked around in every angle to find no panda at all. He ran in different directions like a chicken with its head chopped off, frantically desperate to find the panda. _He left me._

He ran in another direction, hoping that the panda would somehow magically emerge and he would stop this madness. He began panting hard and worriedly turned his head around numerous times.

Then something caught his shoulder. His eyes glowed its red laser color and reacted quickly, swiftly reaching for his lance beneath his robes and pointed towards his stranger and yelled.

"Whoa, Shen! Slow down!" the silhouetted figure said. "It's just me."

Shen felt relieved when he saw the intruder step into the calm moonlight, only revealing that it was the panda.

"_FFFF—PANDA!_" the peacock whispered loudly, angrily putting back his lance inside his robes. "Don't do _that!_"

"Do what? I was only leading the way." Po said calmly.

"But you _left _me!" Shen replied with his piercing red eyes.

"No, I didn't, Shen." Po said, lowering his brows seriously. "I was just showing you the way. You were just acting stubborn like you always do."

"_Stubborn?_"

"Have you even met _you? _I'm doing you a favor, what's your _excuse?_"

Shen paused at the last comment. His eyes widened. _W… Was I being stubborn? Am I always this way?_

"So that's what you think of me."

"No, Shen, I—"

"Save it. I knew you still had bitter feelings towards me." He said, turning, guilty to even look at the panda. _I feel so _weird.

"If I did, I wouldn't give you a second chance, Shen." The panda said apologetically.

His back still facing Po, he lifted his head at what he said.

"I know it must be very hard for you, but the most important step of gaining inner peace is by relaxing yourself. You've been so stressed lately. Haven't you noticed that?"

The peacock lifted his wing to his eye. He can already feel the skin of his eyelid growing a little saggy when Oogway made it youthful. It was like what he's doing right now; taking advantage of opportunities and letting it fade. He was abusing his promise, and he should fulfill it fairly.

"Shen, let me help you. I promise you, I will never underestimate you. I know that you can be good. Anyone can. It's just a matter of trying and finding the positive way of it." Po said with kindness in his voice, something Shen never heard towards him. "It will be worth it in the end."

He ceased stroking his eyelid and gazed at his blackened leg. It was something in the past, something he despised and hated about the pandas. And now, that enemy… has honestly come to him as a friend. All this is so weird to him and he didn't know what to do or how to respond. He figured he would say something wrong, but inside him was feeling stunned and warm. He never felt like this before. He had the same feeling, but a bit stronger with Fan. Something about Fan and Po made him realize that they may be very influential and they could be the best people to help him.

"Okay." His voice cracked. He cleared his throat with a loud grunt and repeated, "Okay."

"Just trust me. Even though I shouldn't, I already trust you." Po added.

_He trusts me?_ He's given him too much; he thinks he doesn't deserve any of it. After all the accusations he's heard by Fan earlier today, he regretted demanding her trust. She did too much for him as well. But if she and Po were willing to give their trust to him, why would he argue. They want to help him, so be it. Or, Po would help him. Fan may help him, probably, since she is most likely an expert on how _friendship _works. He wants to get rid of his pushy behavior, if not just his stubbornness, to fulfill his promise of living.

"Are you coming?" Po asked, taking a first step on the path to where he's leading.

Without hesitation and no boasting and whining, Shen turns and follows Po.

…..

They walked for an hour up a mountain, Shen gasping for breath. Everyone's not perfect, and even though Shen tried not to, he complained once about how far the trek was, but that was about it when it comes to whining. He kept himself quiet during the walk and only spoke when Po asked him questions. He was mostly shy, although he didn't know why, when the conversation led to Fan. Po was talking about the guests' first day of training today and he talked about each guest's performance and when he came to Fan, Shen told him that he already knew about the predicament.

"So now you're going to train her?" Po asked, grinning with his face forward so Shen wouldn't see his smug look.

"Yes, but I don't know how I'll do it. I'm exceptional at my skill, but when it goes to the subject of _teaching_, especially to a _woman_, I'm lost." the huffing peacock explained.

"Huh," Po said, nodding at his comment. "Well, I'm sure that teaching me kung fu was pretty hard, too. I mean, look at me."

Shen glanced at Po and raised an eyebrow. "Your point?"

"I'm a _fat _panda." Po clarified.

"Ah…" he didn't get where this was going. "Of course."

"When I came to Shifu, he had no idea how to train me because of my… _massive awesomeness._" Po explained, holding a proud look on his face as his paw rested on his thick stomach. "But he managed to find out how to teach me in a way that I can understand; through food."

"Did he, really?" Shen asked, trying to sound interested. He focused his sight on the moon shining luminously. He then randomly wondered how Fan would look in the moonlight. He already knew that she looks gold and aqua green in the morning sun. She may look silver and midnight blue in the moonlight, her silky-looking feathers looking like stars shining against her. He then remembered those brown eyes of hers. Fiery and fierce when she's agitated, but warm and soft when she's content or nostalgic, like when she talked to him earlier today. How would they look in the night light? His focus went back to Po after thinking such fluffy thoughts. _Don't think like a teenage boy._

"I'm sure you'll figure out something when you train Fan. She looks like she can be some potential." Po said contently.

"I hope so."

"Here we are."

Shen looked around and was finding himself fascinated by the structure of what is surrounding him. Po led him to a shadowy grotto where the water gurgled and babbled deliciously as it flowed down a small stream. The moonlight struck at the gleaming fresh water, glimmering like shining stars and disappearing into the small lake below. On the rocky wall of the grotto stood a stone dragon, looking intimidating and powerful with its threatening pose, its elongated arms protruding forward, as if it were to catch its prey. It had expressive, angry eyes and its teeth were sharp and jagged. _I'm supposed to find inner peace here?_ But nonetheless, he found the place interesting.

"It's… peaceful." Shen said.

"Well, of course." Po guffawed, jumping across the rocks half-in-the-water. "To achieve inner peace, one must be in a peaceful place."

"I see."

"Yep, and this place is pretty inspiring." Po said. He was going to step on a rock until his foot missed its target and he was sent slipping into the cool, calm water, interrupting and responding with thick ripples.

"_Inspiring._" Shen mumbled as he stared at the soggy panda.

Po emerged from the water, grunting as he climbed on an algae-covered rock in front of the threatening stone dragon. He shook himself until he was damp no more and every strand of fur on his body was dry.

"Now, I shall teach you." Po said, pretending as if he never fell in the water.

"Let's get to it then, panda." The peacock said as he hopped on a few rocks, but stood a bit away from the panda so he could give him some room.

He looked at the panda with eager wide eyes, hoping that he'd get something out of his first lesson. He felt like a child at his first day of school._ Here we go, Shen. You can do this._

"Okay, I remember that Shifu told me that there are two ways to achieve inner peace. In one way, you have to remain in a cave like this without any food or water at all." Po said.

So suddenly, Shen's stomach began to growl at that thought. _No eat for a long period? Hell no._

"And the other way?"

"You find it by your suffering."

"I am a sufferer." Shen teasingly said.

"Well, before I tell anything, just watch and learn."

Shen didn't look away, and he saw the panda stand straight and still. He closed his black-stained eyes and inhaled and exhaled. Then, he flowed with time, or that's how Shen described it. He starts moving into a rhythm of smooth body movements and he does these moves as flowing as the water running down the grotto. Then all of a sudden, a single water droplet falls down and perfectly onto the panda's fingers and as if the two were dancing together, the droplet moved along with Po. All this amazed Shen, and he's surprised because he's already seen the panda do these movements when his fleet were shooting cannons at him, but for some reason looking at these same moves now, he feels that this time it's the most amazing thing he's ever seen in his life.

He knew that the extraordinary moment ended when the panda set the single droplet onto a sprout that happened to be sitting on the edge of the rock he was standing on and it lingered slowly down the stem and leaf and peacefully into the water. _Inner peace._

"So you wanna give it a try?" Po asked as he turned to face Shen a few feet away from him.

"I'm sure I remember those moves." Says Shen, readying himself where he stood. He looked below him and spotted a sprout like Po's, only smaller. _That's my target._

"Okay, just concentrate, okay?"

Shen only nodded in response, and went on and closed his eyes. He took in a deep sigh, relaxing his muscles and his heartbeat slowed to a content beat. _So good so far._ He started by mimicking the panda's movements slowly and steadily, trying so very hard to keep his focus on his inner peace. When the moment came to take the water droplet on his feathers, he couldn't hesitate to open his eyes. The water drop gushed at his feather in his failure.

"Don't worry, Shen, we mess up. Practice makes perfect."

With that, Shen let out a disappointed sigh, but told himself to keep himself together and attempted to try again. He does the moves again and catches the droplet on his feather; feeling the cold water travel fluidly across his wing and making it slide back to his other wing, never opening his eyes. He's confident that he'll get it this time, knowing that this droplet is like a teacher telling him to keep going and is so far pleased with his efforts.

But then something flashes his shut eyes and he's tempted to open them to escape this odd reaction, but he persuades himself to keep his eyes shut or else he'd fail again. He tightens his eyelids to keep them shut and continues moving. But when he sees before him has him puzzled.

_The room is lit with the beautiful golden morning sky shining in the Palace of Sacred Flame's window, the water of the nearby sea shimmering before the setting sun. The pillars of the palace are shining gold and glimmered warmly. The tiles were neatly waxed and smooth and bright._

_In the throne room, the Peacock's throne was shining in iridescent colors and lights, making it possibly the most extravagant throne in all of China. Right next to this colorful throne was a tiny polar white peachick sitting, surrounded by small pieces of carved wood and paper. The peachick's interested ruby eyes lingered in one part in his wing and looked at the piece in the other, wondering where to put the pieces together. Next to him sat a familiar face. It was the Soothsayer, smiling down at the young peachick and watched as he pondered what to do next._

"_What do you think, Nana?" the peachick asked in a sweet and innocent voice. He held up the pieces to the old goat and she took it into her small hooves. She took out her eye glasses to take a look-see at the young prince's work and pretended to look as puzzled as he was. Little Shen stood up from where he sat and loomed over quietly to the Soothsayer, seeing if she can figure out anything to complete the figure. She turned her eyes to see him leaning to see and he immediately flinched and blushed. _

"_Sorry, Nana." He said as his cheeks blushed._

"_It's perfectly fine, young Shen." The goat said gratefully. "But I think I have found a solution to finish this."_

_The peachick gasped and jumped at the goat's feet happily. "What is it? What is it? Tell me!"_

"_Calm yourself, Shen. Here, see?" the Soothsayer said sweetly and gave Shen instruction of the right way to complete the set. When the pieces became one finished miniature boat, Shen beamed, a smile curving wide across his beak and he jumped on the goat in a warm embrace._

"_It looks great, Nana!" he praised. "Thank you! What'll Dad think?"_

"_Why don't _you_ ask him?" she said as she waved her staff behind the peachick. When Shen spotted his father, a strong peacock with shining royal blue, smiling proudly upon seeing his son this early, he hyperactively skidded in front of him, sending him the biggest smile he can express with his enthusiasm._

"_Daddy! Daddy, look!" he squeaked joyfully. "I just finished it! Well, Nana helped me a small bit at the end, but I did everything else!"_

_His father picked up the small boat figure with his iridescent blue feathers and examined it thoughtfully with appreciation. "Wow, son, it looks lovely. Amazing."_

"_Yeah, isn't it?"_

"_Did you make this from a kit, or…?"_

"_No, I made it all myself!"_

"_And you say your miniature boat making's just a hobby." His father chuckled._

"_Of course, Daddy. Fireworks are more fun to do."_

"_Well, tell you what. How about today, you and me, we build this boat, but bigger?"_

_Shen's eyes glimmered at his father's request. "You mean a boat the size of real ones? A boat we can be in?"_

"_That's what I said, son."_

"_Really? Today will be the greatest!" Shen laughed, running in quick circled with glee._

"_Let's go out to the palace workshop then." His father said after he carefully picked up his son in his strong wings and placing him on his shoulder. "And when the boat's finished, we can bring out some fireworks and set them aflame in it."_

"_Can't wait!"_

_But then out of nowhere, one of the royal advisors, an antelope came in and interrupted the moment._

"_Oh, I'm sorry, your Highness. I didn't mean to intrude…" he said nervously._

"_It's fine. You need me?" Shen's father asked politely._

"_Well, you're called to a meeting. It's about the wolves."_

"_Oh," father said disappointingly. He glanced at his son, not knowing what they're talking about. Saddened by the last-minute call away from his son, he set Shen down to the floor. He stared at his father with confused eyes. "I'll be there."_

_The antelope staggered away, leaving the peacock and his son and the Soothsayer looking at them. The goat's large eyes, locked with the peacock's, exchanging the same looks of sadness. The peacock lowered his head to his little boy, his Shen and took a deep breath._

"_Daddy—"_

"_Son… I'm sorry, but…" his father cut off, not knowing which words he must say next without hurting his fragile son. "I just… I'm sorry, Shen. I promise, I will make this up to you."_

_Little Shen looked down with a frown. He was really looking forward to this day, as if it was a special gift, but now that gift has been taken away from him. He sniffled, but he composed himself not to cry in front of his father. "I thought that we—"_

"_I know, son…" the peacock said angrily to himself, but he calmed himself down not to scare his child. "It's hard…" He looked up to face the Soothsayer again and gave her a pleading look._

"_I'll take care of him, your Highness." She said contently as she walked forward to the peachick. "You go on."_

"_Thank you." He said, and then returned his gaze to his child, his red eyes glassy with incoming tears. "I promise."_

_He stood up and walked away with melancholy with Shen watching him go on. The Soothsayer rested her hoof on the forlorn peachick's shoulder gently, as if soothing him, but it didn't seem to help._

"_Don't you worry, Shen. You must understand that they'll be busy." She said quietly._

"_It's not that, Nana." He said in a shaky voice. He raised his head to look up into the goat's eyes, tears already streaming down his cheeks and said, "He didn't even say 'Happy Birthday' to me."_

_The last thing Shen saw was the Soothsayer holding onto a weeping little Shen and soothing him with silent and comforting words. The warm colors blurred like watercolors and changed to night colors of blacks, blues and whites._

Still keeping his eyes tightly shut, he growled at what he saw, what his father never did with him, how he teared up after. He opened his eyes and only to worsen what already happened, his water droplet missed its mark and splashed into the lake below him. _I failed_.

Enraged, he kicked the water with bristling force, creating thousands of interrupted ripples and waves. Po looked at him uneasily and called for him to stop, but the angry peacock continued his furious acts.

"Shen, cool down! What did you see?" Po asked frantically hopping on several rocks to reach Shen.

Shen continued shouting blasts of profanity at himself, only the sound of water splashing and sloshing covering up his words of loathing. Po managed to get a foot close to him, but he was taken aback when Shen accidently splashed water at him, making him slip and fall. Shen didn't bother helping him and went on with his angry state. When Po emerged from the water and stood up again, he grabbed Shen into his thick arms and turned him to face him. Only then did Shen stop the water splashing, but he continued throwing words of insults at himself and his parents.

"Now, you stop there, Shen!" Po said, forcing his beak to shut with his pudgy fingers. But Shen shook his beak away from the panda's grip.

"Why? And let my dad get away with what he did to his own _child_?" he said spitefully.

"Shen, slow down. We can figure this out."

Shen didn't want to figure things out. He didn't want to think. He didn't want to think of his father. He didn't want to think about what he did to him. _As a little kid._ Disgust filled up inside him like a flood, making him forget instantly of what he and Po talked about earlier, of his interaction with Fan, about the day but what he saw in his mind. He didn't want to talk about it at all. Just thinking about it now brought him aghast. He didn't want to tell the panda what he saw. He doesn't want to see _anybody _now. Without warning, he expertly grabbed the panda's feet with his talons, lifted him into a spiral and swung him away to make his escape, flying down to his den acrimoniously. The panda picked himself up and spotted the peacock's unfolded train gliding above the trees, an advantage that Shen uses not to be seen. Po called repeatedly to him, yelling "hey" instead of the peacock's name.

But with every call, Shen ignored. He made it to his den and curled up into a pitiful ball in the corner, now having the dismal freedom of crying as he as he started weeping under his wing. _It's hard…_


	11. Chapter 10

_It is a dark and gloomy day in the Forest of Prosperity. The sun was hiding above the opaque clouds as if it were hiding from the miserable and timorous forest, the foliage graying and cracking from decay. Early-twenties Fan was with her mother, who is walking lethargically alongside her daughter. Fan glanced at her mother worriedly, afraid that she could fall over any second of dizziness. Any food they could obtain would only go to Fan. After she persuaded her mother to eat, she gave up when she spit her given food out and told Fan to eat it instead._

_As she ate a bit of fruit hidden beneath some bushes, she studied her mother. She was very frail and flawed. Her crown of feathers sank, Fan guessing from the thoughts of her husband. She deeply grew sad at thought of her father as well, but her mother is obviously taking it much harder._

_She remembered the romantic story she told of how they met; unexpectedly watching a Chinese play together and they laughed and cried together and how they started seeing each other more after that. After they were married, the newlyweds were thinking about having a child, but the wife suffered a few miscarriages until they successfully had their first child hatched, and at such old ages. They were in their late forties-early fifties, but they loved their daughter with all their hearts. They did everything together with their daughter, letting her know that nothing can break away her parents._

_But now that belief disappeared after the murder of her father, and now her mother is alone and depressed and her age seemed to catch up to her. Her mother was always known for keeping her youth; always beautiful and elegant even despite her age and she never needed any use of cosmetics. Her beauty was natural. But after seeing her mother looking older than normal, she figured that her depression was doing horrible things to her. That her optimism was what kept her beautiful. But as that slowly faded away, so did her mother, which worried her to the pinnacle. Fan frowned at her mother's low state and wished that she could give her some of her food, but she knew that she would decide against it, so she continued eating and they walked on once the young peahen finished eating._

_She began to notice that her mother stopped after hearing no footsteps beside her. There was silence and only the sound of the eerie wind blew through the burnt and crackled trees. She looked behind her to see her mother on the ground, breathing slowly. Fan rushed beside her and began to panic. She examined the old peahen and saw that her eyelid is barely open. She pressed the side of her head to her mother's back to check for a pulse._

_Ba-bum… Ba Bum… Ba-bum…_

_Her heartbeat is horribly slow, and that made Fan's heart beat frantically with fear. _She's dying. _She responded to her mother's perilous death coming by lifting her into her wings, feeling her possibly much less lighter than she was and felt tears coming in. Starvation is taking her life by seconds, death eating her up like the flames of Si Lai engulfing throughout their city. She cradled her mother, the one who birthed her, the one who raised her, and the one who truly and deeply loved her day and night. Tears spilled out as she remembered her mother carrying her the same way when she was a child._

"_Mommy, don't die on me… _please_." Fan tearfully pleaded. "You can't leave me. You just _can't _leave me alone here."_

"_Shhh shh shh shh…" her mother hushed weakly, slowly lifting her wing to touch her daughter's beautiful face. Fan held desperately onto her mother's wing, as if she were holding onto her life. As if she were keeping her from leaving forever. _

"_Oh, Mommy…" Fan whimpered, unable to see her mother through her blurry tear-filled eyes._

"_Fan, baby," her mother whispered. "Don't worry about me. Death… it's a part of life…"_

_This began to worry Fan more. Her mother's beginning to be delusional. Her malnutrition is taking away her ability to think clearly. But she listened anyway._

"_You'll see. I'll be with you."_

"_But I won't see you. I need you Mommy… Death already took Daddy. And with you gone… I don't know what to do!" Fan sniffled holding tighter to her mother's wing._

"_Baby, things like this happen. Life is not all happy and a fairy-tale. But these horrible things that happen… it makes us learn… it makes us understand why we're here… what we're meant for. Someday, Fan… you will rise up. You will find your true potential in this world. You will be the miracle for us."_

_She listened to these words and absorbed them in, not knowing what they exactly meant. Maybe her mother's not losing her mind, but she is losing her life._

"_But how will I know? How can I stop this?" she said, yearning for an answer._

"_I don't know, Fan… but you will. Besides, I'm seeing your Daddy in Heaven… like he promised…" She said, her wing slowly falling. Fan lifted her wing back up again where it was. _Just a little more time…

"_Mommy?"_

"_Fan," she whispered. Fan mouthed, "Yes?" Her mother inhaled her last breath and said, "I love you…"_

_Ba-bum… ba-bum….ba-bum…._

_As soon as her mother's green-brown eyes slowly closed forever, Fan knew that that was it. She's officially alone. Her eyes widened in the fear of that realization. It is all now up to her. She didn't know why her eyes are not flowing with tears at this point now that she knows for a fact that her mother is dead. It seemed like time stopped at the worst time._

_She still held onto her mother's lifeless body, as if at any second, she would come back again and hold Fan in her arms, but that didn't happen for seconds. Suddenly, she heard a twig snap somewhere and looked around cautiously._

_The air instantly felt cold and ice formed on the ground, making young Fan's feet numb and painful. She looked where her mother laid and found nothing there. _Mommy…? _The sound of a powerful flame gushed in the trees and Fan stared at the fire eating up every tree surrounding her. She felt like she was freezing and burning at the same time._

"_Leave me alone!" she cried, walking backwards until she stumbled over a stump on the ground. She looked up and she was face to face with Si Lai. She held her arrow pointing straight at Fan's head. Sweat started pouring down her face._

"This_ is for father…" she said and she released the arrow._

Fan screamed after seeing her horrible dream, losing her flamingo-pose and flopped on the floor noisily. Still in panic, she scurried to the corner of the small room, shouting at invisible intruders to stay away. When she opened her eyes, she shrieked and covered herself, hoping that she wouldn't meet the eyes of death. But her eyes were playing tricks on her. She took a moment to concentrate, and saw that who she thought was Si Lai shrunk into a small, dark figure. She was slowly coming together.

"Mom, are you okay?" the sweet, recognizable voice asked. As she moved in closer, Fan knew who it was.

"Mi Lao, baby." She exclaimed as she wrapped her wings tightly around her daughter.

"Mo-o-o-m." Mi Lao laughed. "What happened? You had a bad dream?"

Fan heard the door creak and saw that the Five, Po and her snake friends Ke Li Si and Lu Ke were peering inside the room. _Was I that loud?_

"Yes, I did…" she answered raggedly. She took deep breaths to calm her voice. "It was…. It was a nightmare."

"What was it about?" Mi Lao asked with her curious eyes gleaming.

Fan looked at her visitors and back to her daughter and took a deep sigh. "It was… dark and… and terrible. I saw myself young again… when my mother died. But then… Si Lai pointed her arrow at me… and shot me in the head… That's it."

Lu Ke and Ke Li Si looked at each other with awed looks before Ke Li Si slithered next to Fan, and said, "Fan, it's okay. It was just a dream. You were only feeling concerned for your city, that's all."

She was concerned. Very concerned. So concerned that now she is willing 100% to save her city and her citizens. What her mother told her was right, she will be the miracle. Even though that nightmare was traumatizing beyond all reason, it gave her a boost up not to have such a thing happen in reality. She also remembered the promise she made to Lu Ke that she would try to believe in herself, and so far, she has had a bit of increase in confidence. Fail on that and Si Lai will take everything Fan owns for sure. _Even my daughter_…

"Yeah," Fan said after pondering her thoughts. "Yeah, you're right."

"Are you sure you're okay, Lady Fan?" Po asked as he stepped inside the room.

"I'm sure I'll be fine, Po. And please, just call me Fan."

"Okay, _Fan._" He joked, and then continued, "Well, do you need anything else before I leave…?"

"Yes, is there any place to wash clothes?" Fan asked respectively.

"Oh, yes, there's a small pond close by here. You just have to walk a little west and you'll find it."

"Thank you very much, Po."

"You're very welcome, Milady." Po said, and left the barracks, leaving the Five and the trainees for a few minutes. Tigress noticed the Panda leaving so early and followed him out.

"Po," she said softly, but still with a hint of urgency in her voice. "It's early, where are you going?"

Po paused where he stood. _Oh, gosh, I'm not a very good liar…_ "Umm." He said. "I, ah… I have to go walk for a while. You know, the fat is starting to come back again. It must've been Monkey's almond cookies. I think they got the kind that's not fat-free; ya know what I'm sayin'?"

"Oh, okay, then I'll come with you." She said, laying her paw on the panda's shoulder to show her helpfulness.

"Oh, um… no thanks."

"Are you sure?"

"What? Of _course _I am! What? It's not like I'm hiding something." He said until me immediately pursed his lips into an odd pout and turned, hoping that Tigress didn't notice.

"Oh, well, suit yourself." Tigress said with an awkward half-smile. "Come up when you're ready to make us breakfast."

"Will do." Po ended the conversation and started walking down the palace. He looked behind him slightly in the corner of his eye to see if Tigress left. She did. He took off in a sprint to check on the lowly peacock.

Fan was still inside the barracks, still wondering if that dream were a sign. A hint. Anything advising or helpful. All she could come up with is that it's a scenario that she wouldn't want to look forward to and that she must aim for the exact opposite. If she weren't so motivated before, she is now. She is now sure of it.

She and her daughter were prepping up after the Five left. Fan took out a fresh pair of clean clothes for Mi Lao. A comfortable leaf green shirt with deep green pants and her shoes. Fan made sure to close the door or else Mi Lao would throw a fit that she's a girl and she needs her privacy, but only her mother is allowed only. She made her strip off her pajamas and she put on the clean day clothes.

"Since it's early, why won't you go and hang out with the others? I'll go and wash these." Fan said as she gathered up all the used clothes and threw them in a bag along with some soap.

"Yeah, okay." Mi Lao mewed as she took out a small mirror and simply combed the fur on her head. As soon as she was done, she stood up and headed out the door before Fan. She smiled as she watched her daughter run off to the palace, remembering when she used to be that giddy and childlike. She giggled softly as she remembered her fond memories of tickle fights with her father. She would always end up having her throat sore after so much laughing and screaming. Her father's advisors and even Qiu Qiu would come up thinking that she were being horribly murdered, only to find she and her father in a side-splitting battle.

She followed Po's direction where this small pond was located and headed a little west and before she knew it, she found a small and clear pond that shone blue I the shade and light green in the sun. She carefully stepped in, her toes tingling with the unexpected coolness of the water and shuddered a bit. She took out the clothes from her bag and let it spill out onto the water. When she lathered up the clothes, she thought what she'd going to do today. _Oh, yeah, Crane's still recovering. _Still, she remained glad that he was more than okay with it all in their conversation last night. It made her feel grateful that the people around here are much more considerate than those at home, and that she is more appreciated and respected by the Five. She wanted to spend more time with them.

She smiled at her musings until a frown formed on her face. _I'm training with Shen today._ She groaned in despair, and hoped she was not loud enough for anyone to hear her. _Why did I make that deal in the first place? _She knew what kind of guy Shen is. The critical type. The haughty type. The incredibly picky type. She knew that if she were to make any error, he would pin it on her face. That's how those professionals are… snooty. With the exception of Po, the Five and Shifu, of course.

But then again, who is she to judge someone when she doesn't know them very well? For all she knows, there could be something deeper in Shen's story than what's she's told to believe. She got that hint when he refused to tell her, but… _but what? _She shook off these thoughts and stood up straight and confident. _I'll face that Shen character. This time, I won't break. I may bend, but never break._

…

Shen finished his breakfast of peach breakfast by himself, sitting next to the empty bowl with pulpy peach juice. He didn't bother slurping it down now. He was too upset to eat after he had a fiery argument with the panda. Of course, him being the fiery one and Po being the peacemaker. Po came to him earlier to talk to him a little, which then led up to what he saw last night, which obviously infuriated him because he knew that this was coming. Shen then told the panda to back off, but controlled himself not to attack him. He may have been irrational about not telling Po his vision from the past, but he still keeps his promise of not killing anymore. Still, he didn't ever want to go back on the subject of what he saw, and it was only ten minutes that the panda stayed before he left to leave the distraught peacock alone. _I don't need anyone to talk to…_

He looked up to see the Dragon Grotto behind heavy amounts of tree leaves, already turning brown, orange and red. _How long will it take me to learn? Until winter? Until spring? Summer? Next year? The next decade…? _He sighed to himself, then reached into his robes and took out Fan's leg bracelet. He looked at the curvy writings of the calligraphy of her name; his eyes following the swift likes like it were a slide. _I shall meet her again today._

He dropped the bracelet into his robes again and stood, looked up the staircase up the Jade Palace and turned west into hiding under the high canopies of the dense trees and flew up s he wouldn't be visible in this daylight. He made it all the way up and when he saw the barracks, he made a risky move and sneaked inside. There was barely any noise but the sweet sound of tiny birds chirping from afar. He knew she wasn't here. He exits the barracks before he covered his tracks here and thought about where she could've gone. _If I were a woman expecting a master to train her, where would I be?_ He pondered to himself. He then found his answer. _Of course; Wu Dan Mountains._ He looked his right and remembered the route he took to chasing Fan the day before. He lowered his thick black eyebrows in a determined fashion and carefully flew and glided toward the path he thinks Fan went. He looked down and looked at the trees passing him by fast, spying no one and thanking the trees for hiding him.

He made it to Wu Dan Mountains and landed with a clank of his metal talons. He looked around curiously to find that Fan is not here. He began to question if she took her promise. _Oh, please… She didn't report me, did she?_ He stomped his foot in defiance and cursed under his breath.

"How could I have been so stupid?" he mumbled.

"Because you don't bother looking harder." He heard a voice say, followed by a small giggle.

He turned and found the voice came from the tree standing behind him. As he walked closer, he saw her, Fan, sitting perched on a tree limb, with the python Ke Li Si coiled on the limb by her side. He was covering his mouth with his tail end. She probably didn't notice his arrival with the sound of the wind blowing through the tree. She looked down at him with those long lashes of hers fluttering. He thought that she was flirting with him, but he realized that he was blinking uncontrollably too from the wind. _I wouldn't care if she _was _flirting with me anyway. _He thought to himself. But he felt bewildered when he noticed the peahen smiling down at him. It wasn't a very kind smile, but not a suspicious one, either. She struck him differently today than the day before.

"So, we're going to start today?" Fan says, positioning herself to glide down.

"As soon as you get the hell down from there, we will." Shen said easily.

Fan had him perplexed when she laughed at him, but he settled with the fact that she's being sarcastic with him. "Okay." She gasped between her laughing and glided down in front of her teacher with a warm smile. Shen was taken aback after she landed right in front of his face, a smile curved on her face. Once again, he was startled by those serene brown eyes. They looked copper-bronze in the sun, almost golden. He shook his head to ward off this odd feeling. The python slithered down after Fan, trying to be as far away from Shen as possible.

"Shall we?" Fan asked. As she took a few steps back, still smiling. She knew that the peacock was being uncomfortable and respectably gave him space.

"Are you fine, Fan?" Shen asked warily, casting questioning red eyes at her.

"Oh, yes, I'm very much fine. It's just that yesterday," she said, rolling her eyes playfully. "I thought that I have to, y'know, brighten myself up. I mean, I _did _kind of overreact to the situation."

"Why, what happened?"

"Well," Fan began. "Master Crane talked to me last night over dinner and he said that there are no hard feelings about the accident. I'm glad he's the forgiving type. So I thought, maybe… I was being pessimistic."

Crane? Forgiving? If Shen were to show himself to him or the whole Furious Five, it would be anything but forgiving.

"So then I felt that… I have to stop looking at the dark side. That I should look for the… silver lining of things. I mean, I'm still alive, right?"

Shen didn't know how to respond, so he only shrugged.

"Right!" she exclaimed, ignoring Shen's straightforward answer. "And, and… it'll just prevent me from going further down in depression, y'know?"

"Nicely said." Ke Li Si nodded, concurring.

"Yes, sure." Shen says, already tired from hearing the peahen's voice and sat next to the tree. Fan looked at him, befuddled. "What?"

"Aren't we going to train, or…?"

"Oh, I'm sorry; I thought you were going to keep talking. I was going to take an extra nap." The peacock grinned sarcastically.

Fan squinted her eyes at the polar peacock and muttered under breath, "_Cabezón._"

"What did you say?"

"Nothing, nothing," she recanted, her words followed by, "So, shall we get this started?"

"We shall. But I just hope that the hard training won't destroy you're blooming confidence." He said, stooping up and retrieving his lance from his robes.

"Ha ha," Fan laughed derisively. "I'll make sure it won't."

"Now, first things first, your attire—"Shen eyed Fan's clothing. Nothing extravagant. She has on a light purple vest and blue-violet shorts again. _And she's part of royalty? _Then he remembered Fan's problem. How can someone wear expensive clothes when their land is being abused? It would definitely not explain Fan at all. Still, she could do better. "It's fine."

"I'm sorry, fine?" Fan asked, repeating her teacher's tone.

"Yes, fine. Why do you question me?"

"Oh, nothing, it just sounded like I could've had something better." Fan laughed softly.

Shen lowered his eyes and shrugged. "Maybe, yes, but I already know your situation, so…"

"Thank you for taking that into consideration."

Shen stopped at those words. _Thank you. Has anyone ever thanked me for doing something before…? _No, he decided. No one has in a really long time. He blinked and looked at his lance in his wing.

"Ah, yes, you also need a weapon. Something that you can use to defend—"

"I know what a weapon is, Shen. Just because I'm a woman doesn't mean I'm not familiar with "manly" things." Fan rolled her eyes playfully.

"Yes, of course." The peacock says, irritated already. "Something like this."

When Shen gestured his lance with the point straight to Fan's face, she opened her copper-brown eyes, the whites of them clearly exposed. She gulped. "Surely there must be something that uh… I can wield?"

Shen groaned and looked around the mountain to see if there is something akin to a lance; long, slim and strong. His eyes landed on a few sticks of bamboo growing from the ground. He bobbed his head towards them to give Fan the message. "Get one of those bamboo sticks. And hurry it up. I haven't got all day to explain everything." And then he slumped over to the tree and sat down.

"Hmm," Fan hummed, wondering what made the peacock so edgy. He did seem so much different the day before. Sure, he was kind of forceful when they saw each other again, but when he listened to her story, he was attentive and thoughtful. Something obviously must've happened.

Fan walked over to the bamboo stick, bewildered at how skinny it looks. It was a healthy shade of green. Normally, she would forbid herself to pluck out anything related to vegetation or has a life, but if it were to be of use, then she permitted herself to do it. Her family believed that anything has a purpose in this life, and it would be a crime for someone to selfishly and carelessly pluck a flower for no apparent reason. But if it were given to a loved one, or to make one feel better, or to give good luck, that can be acceptable as well.

The peahen gave the stick another good long look and she nodded. "Yeah, I can do this." She grabbed hold of the bamboo stick and confidently pulled the stick, only to accidently have her grip slip off her feathers and toppled over. The stick rebounded and hit her head hard with a _whack_ and she yelled from the hard blow. She rubbed the top of her head, feeling it throb continuously. "Owwww, no…" She looked behind her and spotted Shen staring at her with a not amused expression. She could tell that in his mind, he's most likely thinking, _Wow… pathetic._

_Well, I'm not letting anyone make a fool out of me. _She thought. She stopped touching her throbbing head and stood up. She gave the bamboo stick a spiteful glance and pulled it again. As she strained to pull it out of its roots, she grunted loudly and even screamed out of frustration. She even groaned "Come on!" in-between pulls. To make things worse and embarrassing for her, she squealed every time she got so close to pulling it out without success in the end.

She finally took a step back and looked at the stick as if it were her mortal enemy. "You're a very tough one." She said, gasping. "But you can't stay rooted forever." She clamped her feathers once again around the stick and tugged with all her might and strength, only to find herself shaken and she frantically climbed onto the stick as if the stick reacted to defend itself. She gasped in panic as she realized she was in the air.

"Calm down, dear, it's just a stick." The peacock's voice rang to her ears. Fan turned and was Shen's face, upside-down and stern. Shen effortlessly pulled out the bamboo stick for her. She craned her head down and saw the ground is only a couple feet away. She looked back up at Shen and blushed, sending him an inept smile, saying quietly, "Hi."

He sighed in reply while rolling his ruby eyes and his talons that once held the bamboo stick opened.

"OOOOOOHH!" Fan screamed. She lay on the ground; her eyes squinted in detestation at the ignorant peacock. He sent her an acidic and offensive grin. "_Thank you_," she said to him.

"No need to thank me, Miss Fan." he ridiculed, turning to give himself some space. Fan mimed his mouth the moment he turned the other way and stuck her tongue out at him scornfully. "Now, are you ready for torture?"

"As I'll ever be." Fan picked herself up, held her bamboo stick with a stable grip and posed, prepared and determined. She glanced at her python friend and he smiled at her, as if saying, "_You can do this._"

"Excellent," Shen replied, proudly lifting his lance. "Now, we will start with a few basic moves… but you will have to watch me before you do it. Understand?"

"Fully,"

"Good, now watch." The peacock said before he stood still. All Fan could hear was the cool autumn wind blowing through the tree next to her. Until Shen started to explode in a symphony of movement, all Fan could do was stare at his physique moving about aggressively, but also beautifully, as if he were a gloomy but enticing poem. Many times, the white peacock threw out his lance and placed it back quickly into his robes again in a flash. His legs were a sight, swinging as he did many kicks and jumps. When he waved his legs for a full-on straight kick, Fan heard a _whoosh_. When he finished his demonstration, he looked at Fan. She was speechless. He didn't smile, but he chuckled in his mind.

"It's rude to leave your mouth open." He said coolly.

Fan noticed that she let her mouth drop from her stunned amazement and shut it before she could do anything else embarrassing. She turned to Ke Li Si and he did the same.

"Now, you want to try?"

"Uhh…" _Oh, how can I say it? _"It looks a bit… too much."

There was no sound at all, although to Shen, he thought he heard himself screaming, but he realized it was his mind screaming. _Really?_

"You know what they say, do you, Fan?" Shen said, masking his voice. His frustration flooded to his feet, gripping into the hard soil.

"No," Fan replied, solemnly shaking her head slowly. "No, I don't know…"

"Oh, you should, Fan, because it's really a _great _philosophy."

Fan eyed him with an unsure expression. _Where are you going with this? _Shen turned and faced the peahen with a feigned grin that nearly scared her. He continued, "It's that you start…"

He loomed over to Fan slowly, and as he got closer, she got more worried. Ke Li Si slithered over to her and gave Shen a warning look. He sent him spiteful eyes, but Ke Li Si surprised Fan as he kept his courageous composure.

"…with…"

Ke Li Si flicked his tongue at the peacock.

"… the hard part first, Milady." He finished, almost scared of the protective python. He's heard how powerful snakes are, and he never wants to imagine himself in coils and clutching for his life. _Don't hurt him and he won't hurt you._ "Please stop looking at me like that; it's disturbing me."

"Until you stop treating Fan like this. You don't have to tell us what happened, but don't take all your crap on her. She doesn't deserve it." He hissed. Fan felt like she was just the Monkey in the Middle of this situation; only, she was on the side.

But what really startled her was when she looked into Shen's eyes when Ke Li Si made his point. At first, they were fiery and hellish, but then, for some reason, she somehow saw then grow ashamed and sorrowful and bleeding, as if it were his heart in his eyes.

"Then I think we should take a break." He finally said. Ke Li Si flicked his tongue again at him, but Shen ignored it as he sullenly walked to the tree.

Fan watched him before she heard Ke Li Si's whispering voice, "Fan, are you sure you want to associate with this guy? I _really _think that he's psycho." Fan had other ideas however. "I don't know, Ke Li Si. I mean, I did promise…" she says.

"Well, how are you going to get through to him? Small talk?" he asked. Fan turned her head and spotted Shen on the floor next to the tree, lying in the shade.

"It is the only way." She said.

Before she knew it, she was right next to the troubled peacock, with Ke Li Si behind her, alert and ready for any sudden occasion. She studied Shen and realized that he's awake. His eyes were glued to the floor. Fan didn't know how to start talking; she wasn't used to guys like Shen at all. All her life, she despised criminals, thinking that they were the reason for chaos in the world, but Shen may be the only delinquent that may have his reason, and this is that same situation. She took a deep breath and sat next to him.

"Doesn't life suck?" she asked, not making eye contact with him.

She heard a sigh and a chuckle before he said, "More than you know."

"I should know. I mean, I already told you." She says. "But, I just gave you a summary yesterday."

_A summary? _Her best friend murdered her father over a misconception of the theft of a stone and unknown murder of the best friend's father, also to add that her mother died of starvation and she is the very target of her city and now she tells him that all that was just a summary?

"I did tell you I went through a traumatic experience. But really, you don't want to know how it feels like. Feels like heck, especially just remembering it all…" she chuckled sadly. "Mostly because so much happened at a pretty young age for me… I mean, for once in my life, I was _very _happy from a recent divorce at the time…"

So she _was _married. That explains the daughter-thing.

"But then it backfired when all hell broke loose. Everyone was screaming, shouting… all in panic. When we first heard the news of the attack, two citizens, our guards who were inspecting undercover foxes, were already murdered. It's a horrifying thing to think about. And it pains me more to think whether they… whether they…"

…_Whether they were eaten… _ Shen thought, he too, feeling sick at the thought as he shuddered.

"Anyway, when the first notification of the attack broke, I remember I was dancing in my room, celebrating my freedom with joy, and my mother… she came in. She said, 'Fan, you must come quickly!' and I stood there confused. I wanted to ask what was wrong, but Mother caught me instead and she didn't answer my questions when we ran to Father. He was looking out the balcony. I started getting officially scared when I heard the echoes of intruders coming, and they were fast. My Father looked at me and before I could ask him any questions, he grabbed me and he, with his talons gripping carefully but painfully trembling on me, and Mother glided out of out palace.

The foxes tried to shoot us with arrows when they appeared on the balcony, but we were so far from them already that the arrows were useless. Father released a call at the top of his lungs alerting the citizens to flee. They knew the code. They knew the drill. They knew the secret place to hide. Not even the foxes knew where we could hide. But it did no good when I saw the foxes frantically closing the gap between them and the citizens trying to evacuate.

Father yelled, 'Wife, take Fan. I have to do this.' He said after we landed behind dense foliage. I could already hear the pigs shrieking, the geese honking loudly and the rabbits screaming. The hummingbirds evacuated already and they were already safe, but I grew concerned for the rest.

'No, love, not against all of them.' Mother argued. Father took her into his wings and held her tightly, telling her, "I must. If it means letting the two of you live. If I don't come back… I'll see you in Heaven."

I heard Mother sniff and shudder. I saw the tears streaming down her young-looking face. I remembered she cried like that at my wedding; not happy, very concerned, doubtful… She replied to him, 'I love you, sweetheart.'

He said, 'I love you, too.' And nuzzled Mother's beak before he faced me and told me, 'Fan, stay with your Mother. You have to go into the woods, where it's safe, and—'

'Father, I'm not a child…' I told him. He smiled and said, 'I know you are. You're a beautiful young peahen. You have a long way to go through in life. You're my daughter. We're the Flowers. When we're beaten down, we grow back up again.'

I didn't know what to do at the moment. I didn't know if I wanted to cry; everything was happening so fast. He told me, 'Everything's going to be alright, okay baby?' and hugged me tightly, but I had a bad feeling that this would be the last hug we'd share, considering the many fox troops out there. When he let go, he told Mother again to take me into the woods, but I was mad crazy and I yelled for him to come back to us, so we all could be safe. But he was right. The villagers were very important to us, too. I saw him jump out the bushes and attack a pack of foxes cornering a family of rabbits. I didn't know he was so… powerful, physically…

Mother pulled me into an algae-infested ravine canopied by heaped amounts of herbage, where hundreds of citizens were sitting still and quietly. Though, there were gasps here and there from children, but their parents calmly hushed them.

Mother tried to drag me to sit down and wait, but… I didn't want to."

_Why? _Shen asked himself mentally. Her father and mother wanted her safe, and she should have an impulse of staying with her mother.

"I shook my wing from Mother's grip and I ran away from her, from the hiding place. I ran all the way to where Father left the both of us and I peeked through the bushes to see where he was. He wasn't there, so I… rebelliously… followed my senses to find where he was. Houses and shops were stormed into and trashed when I peered inside them. China was smashed to bits, curtains and sheets ripped and rumpled. I even found a child's blanket next to a small stuffed bear, stained with blood and I grew resentful for leaving my Mother, for I wouldn't see such abhorrent visages as these… Three casualties…

Then I heard foxes advancing somewhere. I hid in a house and I saw where they were going. I followed them. They ran to where Father was, fighting against every single fox pursuing him. He kept asking every one of them, 'What's this about?', and 'What happened to you all?'

And that's when I saw Si Lai treading behind sedately as more foxes challenged Father, and he beat every one of them. Then… when he swung one of the foxes into my direction, I know he saw me."

Shen waited for her to continue, but there was silence. He lowered his eyebrows at the eerie pause and lifted his neck. What he saw nearly broke his heart. Tears were running heavily down the peahen's face. She gasped and wiped the tears off her face, but more came back staining under her brown eyes.

"I… I felt _so _guilty… from what happened next… the feeling was so _horrible_… Father… _Daddy _… he looked at me straight in the eyes and in a split-second… I noticed Si Lai loading an arrow to her bow, stretching the sinew and aiming… s-straight at him. I yelled to him, 'Daddy! Watch out!', but… _it was too late._

His heart was pierced by the arrow before he could realize it… He fell lifeless on the ground… and… _I never felt so horrible in my life._

But to make it worse, the foxes spotted me, even Si Lai. I saw her grinning that sly grin of hers and from reading her mouth from far away, she ordered the troops with a sneer, 'K-Kill her.' I had nowhere to run. I was completely open… but I ran back into the t-trees anyway for a slight ch-ch-chance of living. But one caught up to me and snagged my d-dress with his teeth… My only option to escape them w-was to rip the fabric off. But I was lucky… Mother came in and caught me. W-With her, she held a yellow flower, a prickled lily. She aimed at the f-foxes, pulled the stem of the flower and poisonous quills shot them. We ran from their sight and we slowed. We greatly assumed that we lost them already.

It was a good thing Mother shot those q-quills at them. It has an-an effect that makes its victim's memories wash away, so those foxes never when b-back to Si Lai…"

Shen was astonished at how much he has heard already. How much this peahen went through. How much pain she would've felt knowing that she couldn't save her father's life at the time. Never could he have experienced such a thing ever happening to him. He was left at the cliff of the story she's telling.

"W-When we lost them… We hid in a tree and Mother started yelling at me for disobeying her orders to stay with her and that I could've been easily killed and how lucky I was to have survived with her to come get m-me.

But I was still upset and traumatized by everything. The rampage, the blood, the arrow through Daddy's heart. So I yelled back at her that it was all m-my f-fault that Daddy's dead. That I was stupid for leaving and that she's right. I c-cried a river and soon enough, I felt her w-wings around me. The worst day of my life…"

The peacock wanted to look away, but he couldn't. He couldn't look away from the tears that meant desperation, depression, disappointment, utter sadness. He felt the need to do something for her. But he didn't know what gave him that feeling.

"So you think that life really sucks, I just told you my worst ever experience, but let me tell you, I learned a lot from it after. It… it took a long while, but… I learned to forgive myself for everything. I mean, Daddy against those foxes… it was a devoting sacrifice he did, and I'm proud that he did it instead of staying with us. Sure, we lost three citizens that day: the two guards and a… a child… but at least we got everyone else out of it."

"But you still feel sad about the past?" Shen finally asked. Fan looked into his ruby eyes and sighed, sending him a sad smile.

"Who cannot?" she sniffed, rubbing away the tears she streamed. "Everyone who lived that day is still horrified by it. But we try to remind them that it… is the past."

_It is the past…_ Shen repeated over and over in his head.

"And my point is that… I know that we all have horrible pasts and all, but… we must learn to just evade those obstacles… they make life seem harder." Fan explained. "I don't know about your past personally, but you should know that that's why it's called the past. Because it's passed on. There's no way we can change time. Whatever happens… it's done. And I trust you. And… I believe you now about the turtle—"

"Tortoise."

"… Tortoise…. Yes, I believe that you… have been revived by the tortoise now. Oogie, I think? And… I know I shouldn't, but… I trust you now. I just… I just wish that you would trust me to tell me your past."

Shen sighed. _I have to tell her now._ If that whole story was to convince him to tell her his story, she did a darned good job. But after her emotional reaction taking place, it wasn't just a bit of persuasion. She was giving him a bit of her true self to him. And he has to do that for her. It's all he has to do for her now.

"Okay," Shen muttered and sighed. "I… I was a huge fan of fireworks. Ever since I was born, it's been my entire life. Fireworks. It's just that… something about fireworks… they indulge me into something incredible. Seeing the colors flicker in the sky. Seeing how high in the sky they go. I remembered how I dreamed flying that high as a peachick. The sight of them just arouses me with joy. It was my one and only joy.

But… my parents," he said with a hard but quiet voice. "They thought that my huge love for fireworks would cause me trouble. I was very careful with them, to be frank, but still, they thought that I would hurt myself. But one night, I was just about to go to the market to buy more gun powder for a new firework I was designing and then I heard Nana—the Soothsayer, and my parents talking with each other.

I heard Mum talking desperately to Soothsayer to tell them what would happen to me if I continued my… my works of art. And you know what she predicted?"

Fan shook her head slowly and curiously, waiting for what's next.

"'_If he continues down his dark path, he will be defeated by a warrior of black and white!'_" the peacock bellowed out with an epic voice. "She said. Black and white. Black and white. It was obvious what kind of warrior this would be. _A panda._ And everyone knew where they lived. The Panda Village.

So I went and released a rampage on them. It was… it was very brutal, yes. I don't have much control over my wolves; they were insane mutts, but they did a… a splendid job on that…" he stuttered, now feeling awkward saying everything out loud to Fan. He tried not to sound so proud of it. _I have to tone it down a bit._

"Honestly… it was so easy to do it; I never knew any of the residents personally. I lived up to my own philosophy: don't become familiar with anyone and it won't be regretful to annihilate them."

"Let me stop you there, Shen." Fan interrupted. "You say that you launched a rampage at the pandas immediately after you heard a warrior would defeat you. Why?"

"What do you mean why? You just said the answer: because a warrior of black and white would defeat me."

"Yes, yes, I know, but why would you want to wipe out the warrior?"

"I don't know, I was afraid—"

"And you also said that your philosophy is that you don't know anyone, therefore, it is easier to kill them because you wouldn't regret it, right?"

"R… Right?" Shen felt awkward.

"Why then?"

"Because I'm afraid about… regretting."

"You see what you said?"

"What?"

"Everything you did. The time you heard that you would be defeated by this warrior, Po, you had a sudden impulse to strike at every single panda because you never knew which one was the real foe. _And _you never wanted to become personally acquainted with anyone besides your parents and followers so the job would be done without pain when you do away with them. _And _to add more to this, you didn't want to tell me this story of yours. Do you get any of this yourself?"

"No…." Shen said with pure uncertainty. "No, I don't."

"I'll tell you in the lightest way I can." Fan said, crossing her wings for her next remark. "Lord Shen, you are therefore… a _coward._"

The peacock gasped and sat up, his trail unfolding at the last word.

"See? You were afraid of ever being called that, too." Fan said.

"I am _not _a coward!" Shen bit.

"Shen, I'm sorry, but that's the truth. You were afraid from the start from being defeated by Po. You are still afraid of regret and guilt because it feels bad on yourself. Was there ever a time where you felt like so?" Fan asked.

Shen stopped and let his fanned feathers fall to the ground. _Of course there was… "They loved you so much that sending you away killed them…"_

"Yes," he answered. "The Soothsayer told me that my parents loved me, and they grew so remorse about banishing me, they died."

"Banish you?"

"Yes, I told Mum and Dad what I did… and they were horrified."

"Well, who wouldn't? You unleashed an all-out attack on people who never had anything against you… until you did that…"

Shen sighed in reply and continued, "So they banished me as punishment… and I swore revenge…" he breathed heavily and went on, "But when Soothsayer told me—I… I don't know… I—I might have… felt something… but I'm not so sure."

"So you think you felt something… something that made you feel wrong." Fan said, fitting it together like a puzzle. Shen nodded. "It's definitely something."

"And you know what hurt me the most?"

"What did?"

Shen paused thinking about his mother, his gallant and proud mother and breathed a few times before answering, "Seeing my parents' faces after I told them about my accom—crime…" he gasped. "Like they were disgusted with me…"

"Shen, you're being so hard on yourself. Being a parent, I know that your parents didn't hate you. They hated what you _did._"

"…if only I could believe that…"

"You should. But I thank you for finally telling me about—"

"I'm not finished. Last night, I had my first inner peace lesson with the panda. And I saw myself as a peachick with my Dad and we were planning to build a boat together… but alas, he _had _to go do an errand at the moment…" Shen said with bitterness in his voice.

"Ahhh, so that's why you're having such a cruddy time." Fan laughed airily. "But you must understand; your parents were from royalty, and I know, because mine were, too. Royalty has its pros and cons… mostly cons. I know my parents were busy time to time, but they always made up that time with me. They gave up some errands for me, you know…"

He never thought of that. Is it really that hard to be a ruler? Is there more than just sitting on a throne and having honor and glory thrown at you because you're from a long line of famous ancestors? _You have to WORK to be a ruler? _And what about that talk about paying for the… _Oh, no… Mum and Dad had to PAY to keep the house?_

"Oh, busy… maybe." Shen blushed.

"Yeah, my parents and I had fun a lot when they had their free time. And when they're not there, my uncle Qiu Qiu's there, too. And now I'm trying to make up what I have with my daughter, Mi Lao. The little kitten is so adorable; I can't dare to leave her."

_Daughter? Kitten? What kind of husband was she with? What the—? _ "Did you say '_kitten'?" _Shen asked, his eyes blinking with confusion.

"Yes. My daughter's a kitten."

"But I thought—"

"I adopted her six years ago. I'm sorry for not clarifying." Fan laughed softly. "That's Mi Lao."

So she was married before, but she never had children with—_Why the Hell are you thinking these thoughts, Shen?_

He slapped himself with his wing. "Oh, _wow! _Are you okay?" Fan desperately asked.

"Yes, I'm alright. I just—" he thought up of any excuse. "I just had a small spasm… you were saying?"

"Are you sure you're okay?"

"Definitely. Now, you were saying?"

"Yes…" Fan said oddly, giving the peacock a funny look after his unexpected "spasm". "So, I'm trying to mend my relation with my _kitten daughter_, Mi Lao, and… I think that we can make it. And if she and I can… maybe you can, too."

_Can I? _Can he really make up what he's done in the past? Can he really make people forget all he's done? Can he gain trust and become the son he never was to his parents when they were still alive? He's been striving for that his whole life. _Can I do that in the right way?_

"I don't know if I can…"

"You have to forgive yourself first… before they forgive you." She said.

_Forgive myself before they forgive me… forgive myself before they forgive me… forgive myself before they can forgive me…_ the words hung to him like the lyrics of a really bad song, but this one was clinging to his brain.

"Fan?" he said. "I'm sorry I made you tell me your story in… in that graphic way, and—"

"Oh, don't worry about it. You're the first I told it to. The detailed version." She smiled at him.

"But I'm sure it hurt you."

"Actually…" she said faintly. "It does… but I—I feel better about it now."

"Why?"

"Why?" Fan repeated, and looked for a logical explanation, but there was nothing logical about it. Only emotional. "Well, it's—it's like… I just let the truth out. Like… like I let the burden out and…" her eyes widened. "I'm free."

_I'm free._ A smile curved on Fan's face. She let out every single tear out from telling that dreadful story, breathing every breath out from that terrible night, and now she's free. And event she could never easily come out with, not even to Qiu Qiu, not to Ke Li Si, not to Lu Ke or Mi Lao or anyone else… and she told Shen everything. _And I'm free._

She stood on her feet and treaded over to the side of the cliff. She looked over to the horizon and closed her eyes. The morning breeze blew over her relaxed body, her plumage fluffing with the wind. Then she began lifting her wings into the air and her legs went with the movement. Before Shen knew it, he saw Fan doing a series of perfect choreographed moves, each with pure feeling. He could almost hear her body movement singing along with the whistle of the wind and the melodic crackle of the autumn leaves. She was a silhouette of physical beauty, releasing herself out without a care in the world, feeling free at last. _Like the dance when she was free of her husband…_

He studied her movements. He studied her hard like a sentence he wouldn't understand, but would keep studying it over and over to get a huge understanding of it. It was like a flower finally blooming.

He saw how passionate and energetic she was with all those moves woven together into a physical masterpiece, into a moving painting, into almost looking like a combat warrior.

_A warrior… a—a warrior!_

"Fan! Fan! Stop!" Shen yelled at his epiphany.

"What? What did I do?"

Shen ran over to where Fan stood. She had on a look of daze and she looked at him with addled eyes. In haste, the peacock dashed to Fan's bamboo stick and came back to hand it to her in her wings, but she looked at it with eyes still perplexed.

"Shen, are you okay?"

"Your dance," Shen panted out of breath. This is too much to take out. "That dance you did. It made me think; dance and kung fu have one same thing… _choreography_. You think kung fu is hard because of how aggressive it is. Well, I can show you—I can show you to make your dance into a combat style. I can—"

"Shen, slow down. You're freaking me out…"

"Fan," Shen pleaded, grabbing Fan's shoulders with his wings persuasively. "We can find a way to do this. _You can learn. _It may be hard to do it, but we _can do this._"

Fan looked him in the eyes, the scarlet red eyes and she thought about it. _We can do this._ It was the same thing she thought that morning with Mi Lao. It was the same thing she thought when she read that letter from Qiu Qiu. It was the same thing she thought when she talked to Lu Ke. _We can do this._

"It is the only way." She said with a smile.


	12. Chapter 11

Many miles away from the City of Warriors was an enormous base dug deep underground in the dry soil of a barren wasteland. For many years, this base has been kept secret from anyone since the day of the siege against Fan and her city. It sits on a lonely and cold, dry forest that has been decaying from malnourishment; dead land that has never tasted a single drop of water. Not even rain has ever dropped here. It was the perfect secret base for Si Lai's army. If anyone wanted to come, it would be a deadly risk from vultures waiting for intruders to die below.

Since Si Lai came back after losing Fan to the mysterious albino peacock, she ordered an immediate infantry plan all the way to this certain base. She figured she has to take the Forest of Prosperity by surprise; though it would take time, since she's called over many elite foxes of high rank to join her mission to invade her enemy's precious city. It would take months, she told her brother, to gather a notorious and insanely powerful army to take down that dreaded city.

Si Lai looked over her army training, all the foxes down below in any color possible, moving in sync with each other, and their aggressive grunts echoing throughout the whole secret base. Even more foxes were down below constructing more shortcuts and bridges, a task so risky that many foxes have fallen to death while on duty. But the foxes, oh, were they so determined and tall in confidence. They were that dedicated to their work.

The vixen's mouth curved into a crooked but threatening grin as she watched her army at work. She's worked so hard to accomplish something this big and this is her chance for victory. _Sweet justice… sweet victory at last. _She chuckled to herself at the thought of what she could do with the land. Make a new army base, farmland to produce for her city, simply burn it to the ground for the hell of it… the possibilities were endless. _I could write a list of tantalizing ideas…_

"Sister Si Lai," her brother called to her with an annoyed look on his face. "The cream puffs are here."

Oh, they were, alright. Her distant cousins. She would envy them a bit when she was a cub, seeing how wealthy and girly they were. When she and Fan were little, they would have fun role playing as two of the "cream puffs". They actually called themselves the "Pearly Whites". They were vixens from the coldest part of China, but they were wealthy because of their great skill in being bounty hunters, catching any valuable criminal in a flash with the benefit of their polar white fur and uniforms camouflaged with their snow-filled home in the far mountains of China. And were they beautiful, too. She envied their bright blue-grey eyes, their downy-soft fur and their elegant fashions. They would pass a group of dogs and they would only stare at the four of them, their mouths agape and drooling at the girls' slender and fit bodies. Si Lai hated that so much.

She spotted the Pearly Whites approaching towards her and her brother and scoffed. "Don't tell me I have to talk to them."

"I'm throwing you to the wolves… the sexy, white wolves…" Cai Ren chuckled to himself.

"Of course…" Si Lai sighed. When she turned to face the vixens, she showed off a sarcastic grin and stretched out her arm. "Cousins!"

The leader of the four was taken aback by Si Lai's gesture and stepped back with disgust. "Oh, stop sucking up to us, SiSi." She cried. "We don't want any of your grease-stained paws to have in contact with our delicate fur. We just washed it a short while ago."

The whole time the white vixen bantered, she held her eyes closed in her proudness, and also did her sisters. Si Lai made faces at the four and without them noticing and also flicked the grease on her arm on the girls' fur. By the time they opened their eyes, it was as if Si Lai did nothing to them. They were completely oblivious.

"If you want us in your army, we must be treated with _upmost_ respect." She said. But she was off balance when she noticed Si Lai holding back a laugh. "What is so humorous to you, SiSi?"

"Nothing!" the red vixen giggled, her yellow eyes glittering with tears. "Absolutely nothing! I was just… thinking about something else!"

"Just remember," the white vixen said as she stepped forward seriously into Si Lai's face. "When we're done here, we expect reasonable pay. Others wanted us in their wars and I took the liberty of taking yours. You should make it well worth it." And she, along with the other three Pearly Whites, moved along to browse the base.

As if she weren't annoyed by them enough, she heard her cousin echo out snottily, "_This is a base? I could throw the entire total of criminals we captured in this dump!_"

Si Lai growled and faced her brother, saying, "Those brats! Those floozies! _Those b_—"

"Bodacious and sexy vixens…" Cai Ren finished, his eyes making a lazy and laid-back look of lust. "You know, if they weren't our cousins, I would REALLY do them. They look like they can do _exceptional _with those bodies of theirs…"

Si Lai stared at her brother with a revolted look. She gagged intentionally and coughed. She almost felt nauseous. When she felt she kept herself together, she cleared her throat and said abhorridly, "That was sick, Cai Ren."

"Hey, I'm being _honest_." The dog shrugged as he kept grinning at his lusty thoughts and licked his lips. Si Lai gagged squeamishly again. "Until how long are we gonna do this stupid crap? Why won't we just attack them already?"

Si Lai let out a distressed sigh and looked over her practicing army when she said, "Because, Cai Ren, who knows if that little chicken and whitewash went back to the kingdom and tell them that I invaded their city? They would know that something is up and an attack is bound to come from us. We need to take them by surprise. Look at things on the long run, will you, Cai Ren?"

The dog's grin faded as he heard the vixen's pestering voice as if she were acting like his mother. He growled under his breath as he saw Si Lai's back, draped with his father's valuable cape made by the best tailor in all the land with the best silk in China. And it was on his sister.

"We get them again now and they would formulate a plan to get away from us. That's how Fan managed to get away ten freaking years ago!" she continued. "Think, Cai Ren!"

"I am. I am just getting eager." Cai Ren said coolly, as if he did nothing wrong at all.

"You know what?" Si Lai asked as she looked him over her shoulder. "Why won't you count if there are the 500 bags of gun powder I called for a few days ago? Make yourself useful for once instead of being a useless lump."

He really wanted to kill her then. He could imagine himself pouncing on her in a flash and choking her violently before making her plummet down below where the fox troops were practicing. He had an intense passion of getting rid of her. But instead, he stood up and growled loudly at her.

"Follow what I say, Cai Ren!" Si Lai retorted.

"Screw you!" he barked and walked away where the bags of gun powder were stored.

The deeper he went through the tunnels, the bluer it got with its intense darkness with only small lanterns lighting the way. His feet were stomping furiously into the damp soil, his claws digging angrily as if clutching the ground from the stress. He mumbled swears under his breath at Si Lai as he continued up the path.

Then he heard a familiar sound of dirty wings, the sound like pieces of dry tree bark being hit by wind. He knew who it was. His loyal companion, Gou Jiu, an old and agile vulture.

"Hey, Gou." Cai Ren greeted with a sly grin.

"I see you're incensed. Si Lai got under your skin again?" the vulture asked in his old gruff voice. Though he looks very old beyond belief, he is the fastest vulture anyone's ever known in China. He also has a reputation for being impossibly strong that he could snap a tree in half just by bending it with his talons. He never lost any of his strength, and forever remained forcible and vigorous.

"Under my skin? She went inside my organs and ate every part inside out." The dog raged.

"You are indeed enraged." Gou chuckled.

"I always imagine myself doing the exact thing to her; to that _wench _I have to call my _sister_! How long do I have to keep playing this game? … But it must be done right or everything will topple over…" the fox said seriously, his fists clenched. "And everyone will know it's me."

"Be patient, Cai Ren. It will only be a few days until our mutiny begins." The vulture grinned menacingly.

Cai Ren followed his friend's example and he, too, sneered. _The mutiny… When she finally falls and her mindless followers will come to me… Yes… the thought's pleasurably sweet… _

"Yes, it will," he said as he entered the storage tunnel where numerous bags of gun powder were securely stored. "It will be. For now, I have to keep that pipsqueak of a vixen thinking that I'm on her side."

"And it is working, I can honestly tell you. She once told me that she thinks you act the way you do because of an 'immature teen-like attitude'." Gou chortled. "Like a freakin' actor!"

Cai Ren was indeed much, much older than a teenager. Being in his late thirties, he was still a few years younger than his sister, and he envied her so much the moment their father chose her to take the rule of the city when he passes away. He was far stronger, leaner, taller than Si Lai. What made his father think that Si Lai was better than him? She was a female; she was sensitive; she was easy to offend; she was also horribly skinny in the waist. Then he snickered. Her skinniness was led from her grief about Fan and her family assumed to be the ones who killed her father; something she knew as a fact. _So totally wrong…_

He cackled then. "I still can't wait to do the mutiny! I mean the many years of extreme loathing to that _dog_!" he exulted. "Just like I did before, but this… oh, but this… this will be legendary. Everyone will think that she died in an explosion… yes, yes… they will think it was all an accident. They will think that. They will. Like the way they _really, really _knew that Fan's family killed _'father'_. There's no doubt in my mind that the mutiny won't work. It's _pure _genius."

"Amen to that, Cai Ren." Gou praised as he took out his bottle of strong alcohol and tipped hid drink to the fox's speech. "And legendary it will be."

"And once we go back to the City of Warriors for me to assume the throne, I will make that Forest of Prosperity into a wasteland first!" Cai Ren cackled. "I will be _colossal_! I will reach farther than that rookie Lord Shen weeks ago! I'm not after China! After China, then Russia, then Europe, _all the world! And no one will dare to stop me!_"

"_Long live Cai Ren!" _Gou exclaimed drunkenly, waving his bottle of alcohol in the air.

…..

Si Lai stood waiting for her brother to come back to tell her the report about the gun powder, but as each minute passed, she grew furious. Her irises began to narrow into slits with impatience, her tail fuzzed out and elongated.

She huffed as she walked over to the tunnel leading to the storage when she noticed that ridiculous laughter was echoing through the tunnel and yelled out to her brother, "Cai Ren! What the hell's taking you so long in there! They're organized to be easy to count!"

…..

Both Cai Ren and Gao Jiu were too drunk to think about anything, roaring in laughter. Gou was laughing so hard that he began coughing terribly, but Cai Ren turned and crowed at his friend suffering his old lungs. Despite that, they continued splitting their sides.

"Well? Answer her!" Gou guffawed.

"Okay! Okay! Okay!" Cai Ren snickered. "There's only 429 bags here, you _hooker!_"

They both howled again in loud and vexacious laughter.

"Hoo—Hooker! _That's a good one!_" Gou snorted.

"I know! I don't even try! It just comes to me!"

…..

"Ugh…" Si Lai scoffed. "He's so immature."

She walked back to where she stood before to easily ignore the bothersome amusement Cai Ren and his old friend are having. She wrote on a piece of papyrus on a wall the number her brother reported to her.

"So that's… "She whispered to herself, thinking the math in her mind. "Seventy-two bags not there… that's odd…"

She thought while tapping her pen to her lip when she head incoming footsteps of a small creature. "Miss Si Lai! I have your tea here!"

She turned and found a small fennec fox shaking as he held a small tray with a glass of tea standing on it. She reached down, grabbed the glass and took a sip. She immediately spit it out rudely and threw the glass opposite the miniscule fox, shattering into a million pieces.

"DAMN YOU!" The vixen yelled uptightly.

"Now, Si Lai, I apologize for any flaw…"

"I asked for lemon tea, not green tea _dammit!_"

"Please don't!" the servant pleaded, his tiny hands covering his face from probably impact.

Si Lai was about to launch him into soil above, but then she hesitated when she realized her little servant came just in time.

"_Hey…_" she said with a honeyed voice. "Tiny, you actually came right on time. Really, no hard feelings for the tea; it's stupid really."

Tiny was afraid what was going on until he was instantaneously being carried by the bipolar vixen, whimpering like a schoolgirl.

"I forgive you, Tiny. I will if you just do _one, small, teensy-weensy, little, tiny _favor for me? Something that will make me feel much better; _so much _better that I will forget this little shenanigan?"

"Can you do a tiny favor for me first?"

"Mmm hmm?"

"Could you just put me down? I'm terribly claustrophobic…" Tiny trembled to say.

Si Lai sighed in annoyance and placed him down carefully and he stood, prepared to listen.

"Here's the deal: could you go to the Valley of Peace and order seventy-two bags of gun powder?" she said with a smile.

"Only me? Well—that's impossible! You don't expect me to bring that much bags all the way here, do you?"

The vixen brought her paw to her face and in an irked fashion, stretched the skin of her face downward. "No, idiot… you will go there to order them and the vultures _will pick them up._"

"There's no need to be riled up! Sheesh! I'll go then!" Tiny said, peeved off.

Si Lai watched the midget fox scurry along to his demands before she went back to her spot, hearing the chanting yells of her army down below echoing through the walls. She reached down to her belt to retrieve her bow and arrow; the arrow being the one responsible for Fan's father's death. She smiled as she thought of that one moment, as she thought f her moment of triumph. Her moment of… _justice_?

Her smile soon faded as she stared at the arrow longer. She remembered reeling a small bit of anguish, as if she's done something immature. _Fighting fire with fire…_ That's what it was. She was never one to act on revenge before her father died, but seeing all she's done got her thinking. _Am I a hypocrite?_

_No, I have to kill her… so I won't feel this pain… with her gone, it's as if we were never friends… as if I never knew her at all… as if she never existed…. Yes. No turning back now. I have to do this… I have to do this for father…_

She looked across the cave and many yards away was Si Lai's target. She loaded her bow with the sturdy arrow and concentrated on her point, her stance careful and professional, for she would never miss a single shot in her life. Her whole life to her was like a bow and arrow; everything must be precise and impeccable. She stopped when she felt a throbbing feeling on her fingertips where she held back the sinew. It felt troubling. It felt strange. It felt unnatural. The feeling was haunting, as if something were hold her back and telling her not to let go. She tried not to give into the voices screaming into her brain. But the voice was so familiar to her. So familiar, but immediately. It was someone's voice she's sure she knew sometime in her life. _Si Lai, don't do it… _the deceased told her in her brain. She was petrified at how the voice sounded like. She felt her stomach shaken and off-balance. _No, I have to concentrate. Whoever's talking has to shut the hell up. _But the voice kept ringing in her head, her ears throbbing it repeated, _Don't do it…_ She felt so mad she couldn't take it. She wondered anxiously if the foxes down below could hear the same voice, but they showed no indication of it at all. They all continued their duties muted, the voice clearing away all sounds but its own. _Don't do it, baby…_

"_BUT I HAVE TO!_" she cried dementedly and released her arrow. It flew straight away from her quicker than a cruel zephyr. The point landed deep into a piece of papyrus. It had a picture of Fan Ni Sha on it. _My target._ The arrow was sunk deep into the soil of the wall.

The last thing the troops knew was that they heard their leader wailing and sobbing as she ran back to her room.


	13. Chapter 12

The Dragon Grotto was damp and thus proved perfect for a day away from the heat, which was peculiar for the fall season. The moss on the stone grew healthy and moist, the clear and delicious water running down the ravine. Shen watched as his student swiftly practiced her kung fu moves after a month of intense training that the peahen doubted she could embark on, but she went through it.

It was like a dream come true. A moment that was bound to happen for her. It was not something temporary like the time she was learning the kick move with Crane. No, it was something that told her that since her life had its emotional downfall, she could finally do something worthwhile. Dancing being a deadly form of kung fu. It was something Fan never imagined at all. Even thinking about it seemed so silly, but when she looked into the albino's ruby red eyes, she was certain that this peacock, this man willing to turn his life around, will help her to make that into a reality. And she had her trust in him since then.

She never questioned her mentor, never talked back or complained. She knew it by heart that he is a skilled peacock and that he knew what he was doing. Even when she thought something he said sounded stupid, corny or just hard to understand, she kept her thoughts to herself and obeyed her mentor.

She remembered the first day they started to train. That morning, it was supposed to be her first day of training with Crane at the same time. She was uneasy and started to panic until she bumped into her long-legged mentor. She didn't know what to say to him at all that didn't involve Shen in her explanation. Fortunately, Crane had an urgent message from a relative that didn't live too far away and he would come back for the afternoon. He then told her about how their schedule works in the palace: Fan could use her free time in the mornings after breakfast to "clear her mind", and from after lunch to noon before dinnertime would be her training time with Crane. She was glad for this information to come to at the right time, mostly that she would be able to use her free time to be with Shen. It was the best of both worlds.

After talking to Crane and he left, she went with Ke Li Si to the Wu Dan Mountains and found her mentor there. He was there to tell her that from then on, they would practice at the Dragon Grotto, so while Fan practices a move, he could practice his inner peace in the pond.

She showed him a few dance moves she knew after he asked her to show him her knowledge on dance. She stopped after doing a few steps suddenly.

"No, no. Keep going. I need an idea of it." He said. Fan simply nodded and kept on going, this time without stopping at all until Shen would request to do so.

The peacock studied her flowing moves, the quick flap of her wings, and the swing of her neck moving harmoniously with the rest of her body like a beautiful coi fish. An iridescent blue-green coi fish that only he could watch all day if she'd let him. He was always enthralled by her plumage with a bit of envy, but overall liked it. He decided it was a beautiful color for her personality.

_I wish I was born like that._ He would always think each time he saw the peahen's feathers shine in the sun. All he was born with was white feathers. He remembered commenting on it with Fan on their first days of training.

"What color were your parents'?" Shen asked her as they sat for break, eating peaches that he himself picked in a basket. _I finally made my own snack._

Fan only looked at him awkwardly. Shen knew it was a random question and didn't blame her for thinking so. Still, she politely didn't comment on it and answered.

"My father was a teal-ish-blue with brown wings. He didn't shine in the sun… but he did at night. We used to call it his 'night iridescence'. My mother was very warm brown with pink-red bangs and white wings. She was so very beautiful… I wanted to be just like her." Then she laughed. "I remembered that I used to try on her clothes when I was little. She would always find me modeling in her closet."

Shen tried to imagine little Fan in a huge dress; then he drifted off imagining how Fan would look like if she still modeled in her own time. He shook off the thought. _Get your mind out of the gutter_.

"What about your parents?"

"Excuse me?"

"Your parents. What color were they?" Fan asked with a friendly smile. Since they trained, they began to be on friendlier terms each day. They were a bit hostile on their first official day, but after having to deal with the fact that they would do this as an almost daily thing, they decided to be more courteous to one another. Fan mostly decided on this and Shen simply followed it. Although, he was glad they did the compromise, otherwise he would feel like he was talking to a complete stranger. He enjoyed talking to her and expressing his feelings of life to her. She would listen and give advice, something that only the Soothsayer did, but for some reason, something about Fan made him take in the advice. He often shrugged off whatever advice the Soothsayer gave him like it mattered nothing, but now, he listened to Fan's. Other than the old goat, Fan was the only person he knew who would ever be attentive and understanding to him.

"They…" he said, with remorse and guilt of his birth. "They were born… _perfect._ My father… he had a plumage that women died for. Royal blue iridescent plumage and blue wings. Of course, he wasn't a ladies' man and he remained devoted to my mother, who had a plumage of parma violet and sky blue…"

"You really know your colors."

Shen expressed a sad smile for a second; a message to Fan that the joke didn't work. She frowned, too.

"Just trying to cheer things up."

"I know. But… I don't know. I always looked at my parents' friends, and their offspring… they all have colors that any eye would love to see. No one ever talked to me because of my… my curse."

"Oh, Shen, do you really think that?"

"Yes, I do, Fan. I've lived with shame of my condition my whole life. White plumage?" he scoffed. "What could be worse…?"

"Well," Fan thought of something good to say before he says more negative comments about himself. "Forget what most people say. I mean, you _are_ born with it. You should've gotten over it a long time and just accept it."

"Accept that my appearance gives away a negative response? Fan, even if I make this turnaround in my life for the better, people down there would _still_ give a crap about my plumage and nothing would change what they think about my color. White… the awful color of death."

"Shen, I'm sure that you wouldn't be able to get to know _everyone _in this town, or all of China. I honestly don't know a few people in my city."

"A few out of the whole city?"

"It's a _small _city. Give me some credit. But you're missing the point." She drew in her breath. "The point is… who are the most important people in your life?"

Shen stopped and said nothing for a while before be said, "The Soothsayer?"

"Okay, the Soothsayer. And… excuse me, but did _she _give a crap about your condition?"

The peacock narrowed his eyebrows thoughtfully and breathed silently. His eyed looked toward the distance. "No… she didn't. She always treated me like…. Like I were normal…"

"You see? And your parents?"

He only sat there in stubborn silence. He began eating another peach and ate it ignorantly, leaving Fan hanging on the question.

"Are you still on about your parents?"

He continued his silence.

"Huh… can't blame you for that. You _are _still working on it anyway." she said, and then smiled. "For what it's worth, you're the only albino peacock I know, and that's something… in a good way."

That conversation ended quickly. Some future conversations were personal and some were just friendly small talk. Obviously, Shen was a bit stubborn and egotistical on the topics they talked about, but Fan was satisfied that he was being himself around her.

She herself enjoyed talking with him as well; relishing the fact that she's sort of befriended a used-to-be-criminal. It made her almost feel rebellious. If her parents were still alive and saw her with the albino peacock, she was sure that they would really give her a serious talk about choosing friends and which ones to avoid. But a huge part of her said that they probably wouldn't say that about a peacock who was so willing to change his ways. She changed her mind and thought that her parents would applaud her for influencing this peacock in the smallest of ways. Maybe they could fulfill each other's goals.

Aside from talking, they both enjoyed the main reason they go to the Dragon Grotto everyday in the week: training kung fu. In the beginning, it was very easy for Fan to adapt to making the moves right with her expertise of dance combined with a lethal combat style. So Shen figured that if Fan thought of dance as a fun thing for her, he thought that he should make the experience enjoyable, too. It was already fun for her, but Shen had a few ideas of "fun" up his sleeve during their breaks.

If they didn't talk, they would simply joke around and just lounge on the trees. When it would be lunchtime, Po would occasionally come over to them and the peacock discovered that chow mein was Fan's favorite delicacy. He would watch her slurp down those greasy noodles and just grin at his sly thoughts.

Most days that Fan would have chow mein, he would easily take her bowl away from her. He knew the whole pattern. First, she would look at him with her moth wide open in aghast. Next, she would lover her brows and close her mouth to scowl at him, which he found to be rather cute than the least bit threatening. Then he would laugh, which makes Fan roll her eyes in defiance and she would always, _always _say, "Shen, please, don't be this messed up."After that, he would chuckle, which fan often responds fiercely with her tackling him. Of course, it was a weak, girlish sort of tackle that made Shen wonder if she learned anything of kung fu prior to lunch. After she ate, he would double check and decided that she did learn, with a smirk.

He also learned more about her current family, especially those two leg-lacking reptiles Ke Li Si and Lu Ke, who hung around with Fan and Shen to keep an eye on the latter. Soon, they got used to him being around and Ke Li Si, on his turn to supervise, would bring his guzheng along with him to play while the peafowl trained. Lu Ke would bring his parchments and art materials to entertain himself as well. They knew enough not to get on Shen's bad side, which satisfied him enough. They weren't his business anyway and yet, he kind of liked them. They were protective over their friend, and he thought it was good for Fan to have those kinds of people to stick by her.

But most of all, he learned about her daughter, Mi Lao. The peahen would talk endlessly about her antics and her favorite moments with the kitten. And Shen could tell Fan's unconditional love for her unrelated daughter; the way she nostalgically remembered the day she took her in as a newborn. It somehow made him feel warm inside whenever a topic accidentally leads to Mi Lao. Fan would apologize for turning the subject to her child, but Shen would ease her by saying, "No, go on." Once, she showed him a picture of the little kitten and he had to admit, the girl was mighty cute. Fan told him that sometime, she should meet him after seeing how harmless he was so far. Shen responded, "I would be glad to meet her."

Once subject that surprised him, however, was strange for him to ask about, which was a conversation they had a few days ago, recently. They were eating eggflower soup this time during their lunch break and Shen could not help but know about Fan's husband that she mentioned before they started training.

"Excuse me, Fan?" he asked with a nervous but gruff voice. "I could not help but wonder… You said you had a husband?"

Fan gulped down her eggflower soup in her beak when he asked and looked at him strangely, as if it were a question that should not have been asked. "Yes. I did. What about it?" she asked politely.

"I don't know. I know you have Mi Lao and everything." He said. He noticed Fan looking away seriously. "Did he leave you?"

She stayed silent, thinking about how to explain it to him, then came up with, "In a way… but I left him."

"Why?"

Fan took a deep sigh and continued, "His name was Kuang. Kuang Ao. He was my husband. He was an arrogant, self-centered, ignorant and greedy womanizer."

"Then why did you marry him?" Shen asked with a chuckle.

Fan couldn't help but chuckle at the question. "That's what everyone asks me. It's quite a long story…"

"Oh, go on. It sounds very interesting."

Fan laughed, and then took her story seriously. "I was very young, in my early twenties, and my parents wanted me to be wed to someone who would love me and could care for our city. Of course, being the next Lady, it was kind of like being a princess; and I longed for that prince to come and live happily ever after, right?"

Shen shrugged.

"Well, there was this other city run by the Metal Peacock clan. And boy, were they just money-hungry."

Shen's interest increased right when he heard the name of the clan. Metal. Of course, Kuang Ao was the son of that greedy money-loving family. He hated him already.

"But they were jealous of our wealth. What we had was pure and beautiful, and the Metal family wanted what we had. At some point, Kuang's parents confronted my parents, and they wanted an arranged marriage with me and Kuang. My parents refused until his family threatened to blackmail them for false crime. Heh, they were rich… they could do anything. So my parents gave in… but I couldn't blame them.

They told me about my soon-to-be husband and at first, I was giddy and happy… until I finally met him. He was the most repulsive peacock anyone ever knew. When our parents were talking, I roamed around and found Kuang doing some girl in our garden. _Our garden._"

Shen felt disgusted. How could anyone do such a nasty and dishonorable thing to Fan? Then again… this is Kuang they're talking about.

"But… when I was about to be wed to him the night before, we were rehearsing, and my father—daddy, he pulled me aside and advised me to go to the river so I could be away from the marriage. He didn't want me to suffer at all. But you know what I did?"

The peacock widened his eyes, wanting to find out.

"I refused daddy's offer. I was in my twenties. I was mature enough to overcome anything, even that cold-hearted Kuang. I didn't want to be known as a coward."

Shen was impressed. He let her continue.

"So, the next day, we had our wedding, and that night, Kuang tried to drunk me up so he would have me in bed. The thought of it was so, _so _horrifying that I never gave in to his tricks. I wasn't an idiot. I never got drunk and I don't ever plan to. That's how he got all his girls…"

"Wait… his girls? He had—"

"Harlots? Yes, and very stupid ones, too. They would come and go all the time. Kuang was a total heartbreaker. But you know what? That never stopped him from getting to bang many chicks. Once he throws one girl away, there's another waiting in line to be next. They were _that_ stupid. And did I have a say in anything? I actually didn't feel like it. I never wanted him to love me because I knew he didn't have the heart to. I don't even think he has a heart. But I didn't care what he did with those girls. It turned into a daily routine. You don't know how many times I was traumatized when I walked in to see him do some weird maneuver with a harlot _just_ to ask where he put my belongings…" she shuddered. "Except… there was one thing that I just couldn't stand."

"What was it?"

"The beatings… those beatings were so harsh, he would often leave me bleeding without a care… he would always beat me when I refuse to go to bed with him. I remember the options. 'Let me treat you right, or face the pain.' He would say. I would always face the pain. After all the agonizing beatings, he would tell me, 'Learn from that lesson next time.' Let's just say that I never learned. It resulted to many scars on me. You can't see them, but… they're beneath my feathers."

Fan indicated this by folding her neck feathers upwards to reveal a violet scar. Shen almost felt the pain as he saw the scar.

"That's just one of them. There are a few more, but you get the picture. Anyway, I couldn't stand that anymore. I couldn't bear to see my mother crying for me despite the many times I told her I was okay… even when I didn't mean it. I just didn't want her being sorry for me… also my father. He hated Kuang with all his guts that a sentence about him was the only time my father cursed. We all resented him.

So, enough was enough. I secretly made plans on divorce, which was perfect, because when I made him sign the papers, he was already mighty drunk. I never told him, I never told my parents… not anyone. Until that one day, when the divorce was final and he saw me packing his things together. I tried to act casual like it was a regular day. He asked me, 'What the hell are you doing?'

I told him, 'Packing your things. We're divorced.'

He looked at me with those evil violet eyes and said with his horrifying voice, 'What?'

'We're divorced. I can't deal with you anymore.'

He then yelled nasty words at me, blasts of profanity and even threatened my death. But I tried to have courage. I already rehearsed for this day to come; I was that proud of myself for ending the marriage.

But my parents heard him yelling and asked what was going on. They were shocked at what I had done after Kuang told them. Same with his parents. Then Kuang tried to lunge at me to give me another nasty beating, but old daddy came in and shielded me. He ordered Kuang and his parents to leave our palace for good and he left.

But what he did next poisoned our lives forever…"

"And what was that?"

"He didn't leave immediately. We heard cackling in our garden full of flowers I was named after. Fan ni shas. He was burning away the symbol of the city, and the only ones we had. They were thought to be endangered, but he only made it worse for the flower. The flowers all turned back and into ashes. I remember looking straight at him with pure spitefulness, with a tear streaming down my face and nothing else, but I kept my courage and didn't break down.

Then he yelled just for me, '_Long live Fan Ni Sha!_'

The ashes were soon blown away to who knows where…

And I never saw him again. The marriage only lasted for a month. No more… no less."

After hearing it all, the peacock felt a strong resentment towards that Kuang. He knew that he did horrible things, but beating a woman would not be on his list, even when he was evil. He never did anything to the Soothsayer when he held her captive on his return to Gongmen City. What Kuang did was over the top.

"You must've been happy after." Shen said. "Of course, besides the part that… Kuang burned your flowers… did you?"

"I was… I was really, really ecstatic afterward. For once, I felt like I won a battle against him. But somehow, I know that the war is still around between him and me. He wouldn't stop like that. But I guess he thinks that I'm dead after Si Lai's rampage. Still, once he finds out that I'm alive… I'm sure it won't be it for him." she said in a neutral tone. "But for now, I have to worry about Mi Lao and my city. Kuang I can deal with later. I mean, I beat him once, I can beat him again. Not to sound like a sore winner, but in a moral and intellectual context, he is very stupid. Just like his harlots."

"Maybe I can deal with him sometime. What does he look like?"

"Shen, that's sweet, but you don't have to—he's green with violet eyes, and blue crest and wings. His train is orange, green and blue."

"Wow, he sounds like a handful."

"Oh, he fixed himself for the ladies… and coincidentally, his harlots fix themselves for him. Quite disgusting I might say."

Shen agreed. He would much rather have a natural beauty rather than a fixed up beauty, that is, if he would be able to have a girl in his life. Probably not likely for him. He already liked Fan, but he guessed that Fan would want a peacock with colors like her father. Besides, they could be friends, but who would look into him in his red eyes without seeing the peacock that almost conquered China? He wouldn't blame Fan. On the bright side, he wasn't as nasty as that vile, sex-hungry Kuang, right?

But the more he got to know the peahen, the more he became kinder to her without even realizing it until Fan lets him know about it. Obviously, he still retained his stubborn and boastful behavior; not to mention being a tease to Fan whenever they trained, like taking her staff away from her until she perfected a certain move or, again, taking her chow mein away. But he did notice his change before he slept in his den each night, always thinking about Fan and he moral teachings before he slept.

Even during the nights of those months, he met with Po for his inner peace training and the more he was taught from Fan, the more Po was impressed by the peacock's progress and had more faith in him to successfully capture his inner peace soon. But it wasn't that easy.

He did manage to see bits and pieces of his family life when he was younger, but they weren't good enough to analyze for himself. The longest he successfully grasped a far memory was for half a minute, and it even wasn't helpful enough. He tried and tried again, hopeful that he could get something about his parents. _He had to see the proof. _He had to know the evidence that his parents cared for him like the Soothsayer said they did.

Through all the strife he went through so far with Po, he had fewer and calmer breakdowns, often using a technique of holding his breath and breathing out to calm himself down. Though, he didn't explode like the first practice of inner peace, he did end up quietly disappointed with his results, only letting it go by talking to himself alone about it. _Imagining Fan was there, listening. _

He didn't feel awkward talking to himself about it. As long as no one was there, he let his heart out, as if when it was all done, he would feel relieved and replenished with confidence again. If only he could do the same about his parents.

On Fan's side, she was able to gain her confidence. She discovered how it felt to feel like a real woman; courageous, cunning, and alert for anything. The only thing that bothered her about training with Shen was her other mentor; the one she was supposed to train with in the first place: Crane. Though it was against her morals of honesty, she lied to Crane that she had errands to run or she was just tired so she could train longer with Shen. She knew in her heart that it was nothing against Crane; she thought she was a great teacher, but he didn't get her dance-kung fu strategy like Shen discovered. Also, she had a lot of fun with Shen, which surprised her greatly.

But to Crane, he began to feel suspicious about Fan's early dismissals. He was also surprised at Fan's sudden knowledge of kung fu after he got back to his feet from the accident in the first day. He noticed her potential, but was also leery about how she learned it. She merely told him that she just danced and "never knew" that they were kung fu moves. He thought it was a pretty legitimate answer, but he knew something about Fan was secretive. But then again, Fan is a mother to Mi Lao _and _the ruler of hundreds hanging over her head and they counted on her. He couldn't blame her to have all that time to herself. He wasn't as stressed as she ever was. He kept his business to himself, but kept an eye out for any secrets let out.

Despite that, Fan began to have time for her daughter for each time of the day and had lengthy conversations with her little daughter. She couldn't help but shed a tear when she sees her baby smiling at her for the first time in years. The cat would stand up and wipe the tear away her mother's eyes.

"You're growing up so beautiful," Fan said to Mi Lao a few nights ago. "So fast…"

She saw her daughter's eyes begin to shine with tears as well. Being the tomboy she is, she held them back. She knew how to hold her tears back and held her composure. Still, she smiled and sniffled quietly.

"Mom, I'm only six." She mewed.

"I know, baby. It's just…" she stopped and opened her wings, beckoning Mi Lao to come. The kitten crawled over to her mother and laid on her lap, the peahen wrapping her wings around her. "I notice how big you're getting. How strong and—and steadfast you're growing to be. It's like… just yesterday… I found you all alone and I took you home with me. You know how important you are to me?"

Mi Lao shook her head.

"So much that you became the light in my life, Mimi. Seeing you play around and getting crazy… it put a smile on my face when I was down. And now I see you grow up. You're becoming a beautiful young lady… you know that?"

Mi Lao pouted. "Does that mean I have to wear dresses?"

"No, you don't." Fan laughed softly. "But maybe, in the future, you'll make that decision. I can see you; how you look in the future."

"Will I be tall?"

"Maybe."

"Will I… be a hero like Po?"

"I can see that."

"Will you still be my mom?"

Fan was taken aback at that question. "You think I won't?"

Mi Lao thought about it. "No. I don't know. Some kids at my school think it's weird that I have you for my mom. Do you ever get that? That you have me for your kid?"

Fan laughed a real laugh again and hugged her daughter tighter. "I've had some people have such thought about me having you, but you know what I say?"

She waited.

"I say, 'She's the best daughter anyone could have and the best thing is that she was given to me. It was destiny that she was given to me. I owe it to her to… to…always be there… for her.'" She said.

Mi Lao looked up and saw her mother frowning.

"If only that meant something back then… I was lying to myself back then… I was always occupied with everyone else… but not the one person that was most important to me."

Mi Lao looked at her with forlorn. "Mom, I know it's hard to be ruler of all those people… I don't mind."

Fan smiled slightly before saying sadly, "I still blame myself for not being there for you. For… for not easing your loneliness… for not easing your pain when you felt it… for not having a talk for the longest time…"

Mi Lao looked at the ground, as if thinking hard about it, and on impulse, hugged her mother tightly. She purred as she nuzzled against her mother's warm, soft feathers. Fan couldn't help but cry happy tears at her daughter's affections. She hoped and prayed for this moment to come that her kitten would love her back. It was like she found her again after she was lost.

"You are now, Mom…" Mi Lao said with a sob. "I'm sorry for being mean to you before, Mom… I shouldn't been so demanding…"

"No, no, baby… it's not your fault." Fan said with a trying laugh. "I'm sorry for not being the perfect mom. But I'm still trying. I'm never leaving you behind."

She heard Mi Lao sob more and encouraged her to let it all out, caressing her soft dark brown fur and humming a song her mother sang to her when she felt down as a kid. How she missed moments like these with her mother.

When Mi Lao thought she cried enough, she looked at her mother straight in the eyes and sniffled before she murmured, "I think I'm ready to wear skirts, mom."

As the peahen practiced her moves under the hot sun, she chuckled at the two of them laughing after that heartwarming discussion. Nothing filled her life more than her little daughter. She knew she was doing this for her daughter's bright future.

As she finished her moves, she faced her Master Shen and panted, sweating from the heat that proved her determination. She looked up into the peacock's red eyes and somehow knew that he, too, was thinking about the days between now and when they started, for he slightly half-smiled at her, which she returned.

"How was that?" she chuckled.

He spoke for both the memories and her performance. "Damn great."


End file.
